Runes
by Small Mistake
Summary: The world is finally starting to quiet down for the Titans when a new stranger with links to Trigon raises his head. Trying to reveal and unravel secrets leads to chaos as Slade unleashes his newest plan, and relationships fracture and forge as paths cross and Titans collide.
1. An Interesting Afternoon

Robin yelled out as he came down, metal staff extended and slightly bent as he brought it down with all his strength. Cinderblock staggered back, dazed by the blow but far from defeated. He roared in anger but was drowned out by the sound of Starfire's blasts exploding against his indestructible skin. Cyborg kept up the Titan's offence, unloading his sonic cannon at Cinderblock's chest as he charged into the smoke but flew backwards with a yell as Cinderblock swiped and knocked him back. Beast Boy was forced to dodge in his eagle form as Cyborg flew past but flew straight into Cinderblock's closing fist. There was a squeak as Cinderblock tried to shatter Beast Boy's tortoise shell but unable to, hurled it like a baseball. Raven glided almost unperturbed by it as her eyes lit up white and her lips formed the words she had said a thousand times over. _Azarath Metrion Zinthos! _A wave of black energy struck out in the form of a tendril at Cinderblock's chest, wrapping him and immobilising his arms. Cinderblock looked up from his bindings as Cyclops landed with a massive right punch, there was a ringing as one of Robin's discs spun threw the air and burst open to wrap Cinderblock's ankles, Beast Boy finishing it up as a green triceratops stomped forward and hammered the stone Goliath with a swing of its massive head. Cinderblock toppled back slowly and with a massive bang and an eruption of dust as the ground split with fissures from the impact, he fell.

"We are victorious!" Starfire exclaimed as Cinderblock ceased to struggle.

"Try to keep him in jail this time" Robin muttered as the Jump City Authorities quickly moved in on the scene to apprehend the villain.

"Boo yah!" Cyborg chanted, his robotic arm reforming to become a hand once more. "The villain is down, the city is saved and my baby is for once not completely destroyed" he said, looking over to where the T-Car sat, its only flaw was the chrome sheen had been taken off by all the dust, nothing a wash wouldn't make short work of. "Only one thing left to do… PIZZA!"

"Are you coming Robin?" Raven asked as all but their leader turned back towards the car.

"Yeah" Robin said, still watching Cinderblock being taken away, the ever-present wrinkle in his brow as he wore his frown of thought, masked eyes narrowed. "Yeah."

* * *

An orange frisbee flew through the air of the park as a strange green dog chased it happily, a trail of slobber followed in the air behind its outstretched tongue. The wind caught the frisbee and lifted it up as the dog jumped and narrowly missed. In the midair, the dog suddenly shape-shifted into a green kangaroo, hit the ground and took an enormous jump, then changed into an elephant in the leap and reached out with its trunk to catch the frisbee, landing back on the ground again as the dog. It trotted back with pride, the frisbee clutched in its teeth as Cyborg took the frisbee from its mouth. "Okay, I'll give you a real challenge now" he told the dog, his arm pulling back, the lights on the panels brightening as he built up some power. "Fetch!" Cyborg yelled, his arm shooting around and the frisbee whizzing off. The dog changed into a green leopard and sprinted off with a growl. There was a scream as a family's picnic was disrupted by a charging overexcited leopard.

Raven opened one eye as the ground quaked minutely. "Could you go one day without being as loud as you possibly could?" She asked, her legs crossed as she floated three and a half feet off the ground, her meditations disturbed.

"They are partaking in the wondrous joy this day has to offer Raven!" Starfire exclaimed, her arms full of freshly picked flowers, a few in her hair. She gestured to the bunch in her hands. "Would you like to join me in the making of daisy chains?"

Raven's one open eye stared at her for a second before slamming closed. "No" she said flatly.

Robin was sitting on the ground, taking apart one of his various gadgets, checking every piece, panel and screw for the slightest imperfection. "What troubles you Robin?" Starfire asked.

Robin's eyes squinted as he clicked two pieces together, holding them up in the light to examine them. "We stopped Cinderblock. But that makes three attacks in as many weeks, and we have no idea what they're doing, what they're after or how they're connected. We only know they're all linked by one person."

"Slade" Cyborg said, his voice deepening with almost a hint of dread that crept into any of their voices when they said his name, save Raven who Slade tinged her voice with anger.

"I know he's gone" Robin said through gritted teeth, "but somehow it's like he's still there, lurking in the shadows, pulling the strings on some plan and we're always two steps behind as usual." His hand pulled into a tight fist. "I don't like being behind."

"Do not fear Robin" Starfire soothed, "we will find his plans like weeds and rip them out one by one, just like I have with these dandelions, though they are also incredibly gorgeous."

Robin pieced his gadget back together as Starfire sat down beside him, threading her dandelion and daisy stalks together. The sun shone, the birds sang and for a brief moment of happiness all was right with the world. As was often with the world of the Teen Titans though, it was never meant to last. Raven's eyes suddenly opened, her mouth parted open as she gasped. "What is it?" Robin asked, immediately alert.

"I sense someone" Raven said, still in her meditative state. "Someone like…"

"Slade?" Robin asked.

"Me" Raven replied, then an explosion ripped through the silence, making everyone jump to their feet. "Uh…" Beast Boy started, having changed back into his usual form, "what was that?"

A plume of smoke began to rise from just the other side of the park. "Trouble" Robin grunted. "Titans, go!"

The group rushed forward against the flow of screaming people fleeing the chaos. The burning car sat at the edge of the park, the hood of the car had a massive indent in it as if it had hit something indestructible, or something indestructible had hit it. "Look!" Beast Boy cried, pointing out with an outstretched finger at a figure who had been trying to escape attention. Robin's newly rebuilt bird-a-rang hammering into the tree trunk beside the figure served to tell him he had failed. The figure turned to the Titans, it was a boy, the same age as any of them. He had black hair that was longer than Robin's, it fell to cover his ears and touch the bottom of his neck, his eyes were hidden in the shade of his fringe. He was wearing a long black-sleeved shirt that covered all but his fingertips and a normal pair of pants, he looked just that; normal. Experience had taught the Titans that looks could be very deceiving though; none of them had dropped their guard.

"That's a bad way to react to a parking fine" Robin told him.

Raven was more interested in this new figure than she was usually with her missions, waiting for the boys to trade one-liners before erupting into a fight. He had been the one she had sensed, she knew it. She just didn't know why, and that was worrying her. "Does this guy have a name?" Beast Boy asked.

The stranger's face suddenly snapped into anger as he roared and charged straight at Beast Boy. Before any of them of could react, the stranger had leapt forward and swung with a kick that sent Beast Boy flying with a yell. "Titans, go!" Robin yelled, jumping with a spinning kick. The stranger dodged it and pushed at Robin's back, shoving the Boy Wonder away.

"We're gonna need something to put on your tombstone" Cyborg muttered as he moved in, his robotic hand transforming. "Until then, let's just put you on ice with the cryo-cannon!" He had barely finished his line before the figure had grabbed him by the end of the cannon and hurled him at Starfire, the energy ball she had hurled hitting him and the explosion throwing them both back.

"Dude, was this just all because I asked your name?" Beast Boy asked, rejoining the fray. "You don't have to tell us, it's cool! Cyborg makes up some great lines!" He then shifted into a grizzly bear as the figure moved at him but stopped as Raven pulled up a wall of dark energy out of the ground to come between them. He looked at her and his eyes widened as she threw a wave at him, his irises were the same violet as hers. He dived out of the way as she chased him with blasts. As much as she wanted to know who this stranger was, she wanted to protect her friends more. The stranger stepped in and out of both Raven and Starfire's attacks, jumping into the air and putting the alien between the three around to stop Raven from attacking momentarily. He pushed off her back and flipped through the air, landing lightly on the ground. "Stay away!" He yelled at them, or was it just to Raven, for it was her he was looking at. Beast Boy was not yet ready to take such advice just yet as a bull charged towards the attacker. The boy didn't even waver, drawing back a fist as the bull came closer before unleashing the punch. As he did, his sleeve fell back and Raven knew why she had sensed him. Glowing up his hand, his palm and the backs of his fingers were extensive designs, elaborate and gorgeous like henna, she had seen similar markings on her own arms when Trigon had attempted to bring her back to him before. Beast Boy's yell was audible as he flew through the air, Cyborg's catch the only thing saving him from worse injury. Both Starfire and Raven hesitated at the expression of both fear and anger in his eyes looking down at his hand before he turned to run, straight into Robin's staff, knocking him to the ground.

"Lights out" Robin said as he brought the tip down hard and hit him in the forehead, knocking him unconscious. The Titans paused for a moment as they caught their breath before Robin asked, "what do we do with him?"

"He was well-trained" Starfire said, looking down at him. "Yet I do not sense he wanted to hurt us."

"Speak for yourself" Beast Boy said, rubbing the back of his head.

"She's right" Raven said, "he was _afraid_ of hurting us."

"That doesn't change the fact that he's a criminal" Robin said, keeping his staff steady.

"We better make a choice soon" Cyborg said, a hand to the cybernetic side of his head, "authorities are on the way and I don't think they're gonna be happy with us about two incidents in one day."

"Just leave him for them" Beast Boy insisted, "he's not exactly the most super criminal we've ever fought."

"He just punched a charging bull airborne thanks to a tattoo!" Cyborg exclaimed, "that doesn't seem super to you?"

"Terra was a criminal once" Starfire said quietly.

Robin's eyes narrowed as the noise of sirens became obvious in the wind. "We'll take him with us back to the tower, see what we can learn" he declared. "I doubt anyone will be too upset if we borrow him just for a while."


	2. The Stranger

None of the Titans had left the medical bay for more than a minute since they had brought back their new interesting passenger. Beast Boy had been vehemently opposed to the entire idea but soon his anger had subsided to simple grumbling, annoyed that in the fight he had had his butt kicked the most out of any of them. Cyborg had configured the bed to restrain the teen while Robin was monitoring his vital signs looking for something special. Starfire was with him doing the same, but more out of interest in his health rather than the source of his powers. Raven was meditating, feeling his aura clash with hers and trying to divine his power that way. "It's not cybernetic" Cyborg said, a scanner retracting back into his arm. "Kid doesn't have so much as a cellphone."

"I don't see anything too amazing about his blood" Robin said, his back turned. "He's not alien, his powers aren't genetic."

"What about his skin markings?" Asked Starfire, "surely they hold the key to his significance? They lit up as he used his power, there has to be something about them that could help us discover who he is."

"Nothing special about them" Cyborg dismissed, "I checked the hand you described first, then the rest, no hidden written incantation in there, and we have quite the database thanks to Jinx." He gestured over to where their prisoner lay in the bed, electrodes attached to his his temples and other wires snaking from his hands and wrists. Cyborg had pushed back the sleeve to study the hand, then finding more tattoos, had removed the shirt to find tattoos painted all up the length of both his arms, the two linking through further ink across the tops of his shoulder blades and his collarbones. They were an endless amount of linking, spiralling and twisting designs, forming some sort of pattern that the Titans could not fathom, like seeing an alien language for the first time. His clothes had hidden a muscular form, but slim, it did not look like this meta-human had lived an easy life of luxury before coming face-to-face with the Titans. His clothes were also well weathered, the pants had a hole worn in one of the knees and the pockets were stuffed with random bits of junk, an unknown significance attached to all of them.

"So is he just strong like Mammoth?" Beast Boy asked. "Cause we dealt with him plenty of times."

"There is something magic about him!" Starfire exclaimed, startling all of them, even Raven came out of her mediations, lowering her feet to the floor to stand. "And he is still a person, not a science project to be guessed and prodded at!"

"But we do need to find out something about him Star" Robin soothed, "he was a threat today, even you could see that."

Starfire's shoulder's sagged in defeat. "Just be gentle with him" she said quieter, almost to balance out the volume of her outburst. "Designs on one's own skin have great meaning amongst my people, representing a commitment few are willing to make. I do not wish to see someone who would make such a choice come to unnecessary harm for our curiosity." She left.

"I don't suppose you learnt anything new" Robin said to Raven after watching Starfire leave. She shook her head.

"His energy is… hard to define. I sense part of me, of my world in him, but he is not of that world. He lives here but is there, I can't understand him when he has no idea about himself. I can tell you one thing though" she said, getting the remaining Titan's interest. "These aren't tattoos" she said, stepping closer and brushing his arm with a finger. "They're runes, deep magic not even I understand fully."

"So Star was right, he is magic?" Beast Boy asked.

"In a way" Raven muttered, making them all groan with the imminence of another twisted complicated answer. "It's where he draws his power from, but he is not a magical being, usually a person shouldn't be able to survive the power of one rune, let alone all of these." Her finger ran along the line of one, feeling the mark etched in his skin, running deeper than the ink to conceal it, confirming what she already knew.

"So he's like you but not" Robin said. "Could he be half? One parent from each world? You said he's different from you but you're the daughter of Trigon, between you and any normal demon is a lot of weakened power. Maybe he just has a small amount of blood, enough to help him survive the runes."

"How did he get them too?" Cyborg added, "Last I checked this guy didn't have any extra arms to help him decorate his back."

"It's a mystery that can wait until tomorrow" Robin declared as rain began to hit the window, thunder rumbling in the dark clouds amongst the night sky. "Let's get some sleep and ask him in the morning. If Starfire's right, maybe he'll help us understand him by us helping him."

"Restraints are staying on though" Cyborg said, checking the screen on his arm to make sure the locks were still in place.

"Amen" Beast Boy concurred, following him out.

"Let's go" Robin said, standing at the doorway looking back at Raven still standing beside him as he switched the light off.

"Yeah" she said, letting her finger leave his runes as she left with Robin, hoping that this mystery would involve as little of her as possible. Starfire's compassionate outburst had calmed their curiosity and Raven was well aware that it was possible that at times she lacked _compassion._

"Are you okay?" Robin asked as she floated past him.

"Fine" she replied as neutrally as she could manage. She had closed her eyes as she passed the Boy Wonder so he wouldn't have seen the fear in her eyes. Because despite all her self-assurances that Trigon was gone, checking their tattooed patient's back, she couldn't deny that the centre most rune on his body was the Mark of Scath.

Lightning flashed through the sky as the storm raged on outside. Rain lashed against the windows of Titans Tower as the storm battered Jump City. Lightning again flashed, throwing shadows against the walls, thunder battered so fiercely it was scarce wonder that the elemental brothers weren't at their old antics of 'having fun'. In the medical bay, the teenager's eyes suddenly snapped open to clap of thunder. His hands curled into fists as he instinctively struggled against the shackles but it was hopeless. He waited for a moment more before his eyes flashed and a design on his shoulder lit up the same glowing yellow, his eyes narrowed in satisfaction. Lightning lit up the dark room again, showing a medical bay, a host of machines, and an empty bed, all the manacles hanging open. The youth hunted around before he found his clothes, pulling his sleeves back over his arms rather hurriedly before seeing to the rest of his clothes. He looked around one more time before making his way to the exit, it was time to make his escape. Jump City in early September was supposed to be beautiful but so far it had only brought him trouble. Perhaps he could find some work again in Gotham, he'd managed to make a living on its darkest streets before. He didn't want to return to the same place twice but given his circumstances it didn't look like he would have any other choice. The door slid open soundlessly and he made his way into the hall, looking both ways before picking one and beginning to move off. "Going somewhere?" Raven asked, descending from the ceiling, wrapped in her cloak.

The teenager braced himself. "I don't want to fight you" he told her, turning to take another step.

"There's a motion sensor in the wall you'll set off if you keep going that way" Raven told him, "that'll wake up Cyborg. Beyond that is the laser of Robin's which you're about to trip that'll bring him coming, and he's still awake brooding over you. You hurt any of them and their cries will wake Starfire up, she's one you wouldn't want to fight. Beast Boy probably wouldn't wake up if you brought the entire tower down but Cyborg would pick him up on his way here. There is no way to leave without starting a fight."

The teenager's fist only clenched tighter. "What do you want from me?"

"We want to know who you are" Raven told him neutrally. "It's not every day we find a new person with your kind of power that we've never seen before."

"You want to experiment on me."

"Not if we can avoid it, though Robin has been somewhat open to the possibility."

"And what about you?"

"I'm more interested in what's on you than what's in you" Raven replied, "where and how did you get the runes?"

"Not by choice" he replied. "But I make the most of them."

"Clearly" Raven remarked. "Do you have a name?"

The teen's face snapped back into such a furious expression Raven pulled energy to her hands bracing for an attack. The teen seemed to remember Raven's words though and calmed himself. "They called me Darkside" he told her.

"Who is they?" Raven asked.

Darkside's face clouded for a moment as he retreated back into his memory. "Bad people."

Raven eyed him for a moment, then felt a wave of fatigue wash over her body from standing watch for most of the night after the two fights. "Promise to still be here in the morning? We can help you."

"I don't need help" Darkside told her, "but I'll stay for the briefest of moments."

Raven nodded and disappeared through a hole of darkness she created in the floor. Robin watched from the shadows as Darkside took a worried step back from her power, before retreating back into his room, subdued by her words. There would be a reckoning with Darkside he believed. Something told him this was Terra all over again, but while Terra couldn't control her powers, Darkside almost seemed like he didn't want to.

Darkside sat at the table nervously for breakfast. He had taken a stool and moved it around the table so that he could see the door and anyone who came through it, keeping the table between him and the rest of the room. "So why do they call you Darkside?" Beast Boy asked, his foul manner disposed of with the long sleep. Darkside fixed him with a long stare.

"Pray you never find out, for both of our sakes" he told him.

"For both of our sakes…" Beast Boy muttered in a stupid fashion imitating Darkside. _Great, just what we needed _He thought, _another Raven. _

"Would you like to sample some of alien cuisine?" Starfire asked, displaying a dish that looked impossibly bad as it tasted.

"No thanks" Darkside told her, "I made my own."

Starfire retreated, a little disappointed but she moved on quickly. Darkside had his sleeves pulled down all the way again, covering his tattoos. With his shirt the tips of the ink usually poked out from under his collar but he had taken a hooded jersey zipped all the way up, obscuring everything. His hair fell lightly amongst his face. His eyes were still focussed on the bench under his hands linked by interlocked fingers, waiting for his impending interrogation. They were just missing one more Titan before it began, he knew it. The door slid open with a hiss and in stepped Robin's boots. "Titans, training" he declared. Everyone nodded and left through the door. "Are you coming?"

Darkside looked up, Robin was still standing in the doors, looking at him. "Don't you want to question me, find out what I am?"

"Actions speak louder than words" Robin replied. "And I'm pretty sure we all want to see what you can do."

"But I thought you wanted to experiment on me, or at least see me punished?"

"Everyone of us has made mistakes in our past. Starfire's released villains out of compassion, Cyborg's quit the team before, Raven's a demon, Beast Boy can get out of control with anger pushed far enough and I was the apprentice of a psychopath and I've hurt my friends more than once to accomplish my goals. What we were doesn't have to be who we are."

Darkside stood and joined Robin, making their way down to the beach of the island. Darkside and Robin watched at the other four Titans battled their way through an army of robotic tricks and traps, each designed to challenge the Titan they were aiming at. Cyborg struggled as robots piled on top of him, challenging his weight capacity. Beast Boy was diving through laser grids that forced him to change to fit through the next grid's gap. Starfire was avoiding anti-air blasters while replying with star bolts and Raven was disassembling a robot with bursts of energy, holding every piece in the air as it was rapidly deconstructed. Darkside shifted nervously as Raven's display. "It's nothing to be afraid of" Robin reassured him, "Raven's dark energy stems from her lineage, it's nothing unnatural."

"It's not what it is that causes fear," Darkside, "it's what it can do."

"Well we're more interested in your powers" Cyborg said, throwing off the weights. He gestured around to the course he had obviously created. "Care to give my baby a try? Be careful though, she bites."

"Which do you want to try?" Robin asked as he activated a control panel and Darkside replaced the Titans in the course.

"All of them" Darkside replied.

Robin looked at Cyborg who shrugged, then began to activate the courses. Darkside pulled off his jersey, but kept the shirt on and the sleeves down.

"I fear for our new compatriot" Starfire said.

"What?!" Beast Boy exclaimed at her. "He's not a Titan!"

"This… should be interesting" Raven muttered.

Darkside stood amongst the skeletal steel arms, watching each intently, looking to see which one would activate first. He was answered by Cyborg's weight course, a crane dropping a steel plate which came down with a crash and an explosion of dust. The Titans shielded their eyes from the dust as they looked to see no Darkside, but the plate near flat against the ground. "Darkside!" Starfire called out in worry.

The plate shifted minutely, then a corner lifted off the ground. "No way…" Beast Boy whispered.

The plate lifted higher to reveal Darkside on one knee, his head down and his hair had fallen over his face but that wasn't what had caught their amazement. Running down Darkside's arms was a line of runes, glowing a light brown. Darkside pushed and stood, lifting the plate above his head, his irises a similar colour to the runes. There was a burst of explosions as the top of the plate was peppered by the attack drones that had pursued Starfire. Darkside struggled for a moment, his lips curled in a growl through his gritted teeth before the brown runes brightened and he hurled the plate through the air, destroying the majority.

"That's impossible!" Cyborg cried, "that plate's over two tonnes, even I can't throw it!"

Darkside seemed not to have noticed however, running for the laser grids whilst being chased by the remainder of the drones. Darkside's eyes changed as he crossed his arms and pressed his fingers against the top of his shoulders, beginning to change the light a dark blue. "No chance" Beast Boy summed up as the first hole was meant for a rhino but the second was the size of a sparrow and in the top corner of the grid. Darkside threw himself through the lasers and shimmered briefly as he passed through unscathed. "Yo Robin, why does he get the easy pass?" Beast Boy complained.

"He isn't" Robin said, checking the screens, "the electric field is still up, he's just passing through it."

Darkside proved it by passing through the last field and spinning around, tossing glowing yellow discs off his forearms and destroying the last two drones. He turned around to be seized around the ribs by the robot that Raven had been practicing on, there was no breaking free of its grip once it had locked in. Darkside struggled but realising its futility, reached down into his pocket and pulled out one of the pieces of junk, it looked to be a pebble of some kind. He scratched it along the metal and his eyes turned black, accompanied by a large tattoo at the centre of his back. Darkside slammed his fist into the metal skin of the robot's arm and as the Titans watched, black energy began to spread from his fist, enveloping the robot. Raven reached out with her senses, this was not like her energy, she put a part of herself into every spell she cast, she had control. This energy she felt was like rage, burning and white-hot, and whatever was fuelling it, was not Darkside. The robot groaned for a moment before exploding in a shower of metal pieces, Darkside lightly landed, revealed as the dust cleared. He brushed the dust off his shoulder and looked up at the slack-jawed spectators staring. "That's what I can do" he told them.

"How did you do that?" Robin asked.

"My runes" he said, gesturing. "They all represent different powers, abilities infused into my body. Some I can trigger just by thinking about them, others I have touch, some are triggered by certain sounds, hence this," he said, holding up the pebble before returning it to his pocket with all his other triggers. "Others are sometimes triggered by emotions, pain, almost anything. I don't know what a lot of them still do, I only find out when they activate for the first time. One time I was working at a diner in Steel City, this guy comes in wearing some sort of cologne and I ended up blasting a hole in the wall with my eyes."

"Dude" Beast Boy said.

"You are truly most talented" Starfire said, "to control such gifts."

"Yeah" Darkside said, looking away. "Gifts."

"How much power are you packing in there?" Cyborg asked jokingly, looking at Darkside's slim body.

"And how has it not torn you apart?" Raven finished, darkening the conversation somewhat, even though there was a more caring touch to her voice than usual.

"I don't know" Darkside told them. "I just have powers and I try not to use them. I move around a lot, never really staying in one place for long, I just… leave."

"You don't have a home?" Starfire asked.

Darkside shook his head. "That was taken from me a long time before I got the runes."

_He really is like Terra _Robin thought. He could see by the clouds in Beast Boy's eyes that he was thinking the same thing.

A blip on his communicator interrupted whatever his next thought was going to be. Robin flipped it open and narrowed his eyes. "Plasmus" he cursed.

"Another one of Slade's goons" Cyborg said.

"Let's get going" Robin ordered as the group ran back to the tower. All except one. Darkside watched them go, knowing this wasn't a place he was invited to go. He waited for a moment, then followed their trail back up to the tower. They would be gone for over an hour easily, enough time for him to escape this place, this city. It was time for him to go once more.


	3. Allegiance

Darkside packed what little possessions he had that had been stripped of him when he had been taken and quickly left. Looking around, he tried to make his way out but the winding corridors of Titans Tower soon had him lost. Opening a door, he sighed in annoyance, he had found his way to the main lounge of the tower looking over the bay. He looked around and almost left but a smoke stack rising out of the city caught his eye. He looked at it cautiously before turning on the TV. A news channel came onto the enormous screen and the first two words were enough to catch Darkside's attention. _Teen Titans… _He looked back to the screen. "…locked in a fierce confrontation for the past few minutes with the infamous super criminal Plasmus, who appears to have increased in both size and strength since their last known confrontation. The battle can be heard from more than three blocks away, explosions and the screams are quite audible…" The wall beyond the reporter exploded with a grunt as Cyborg was zoomed in on, laying amongst the pile of bricks. He groaned and pushed them off himself before rejoining the fight. "As you can see, the fight is fierce, and the Titans, for now at least, are not winning."

Plasmus roared and blasted a torrent of magenta ooze from his right arm. Robin dodged and flung three exploding discs, all finding their mark in Plasmus' chest, the holes simply filling up again though. Plasmus blocked the impact of Starfire's beams as she flew past overhead, keeping him occupied. Plasmus turned to watch her as Beast Boy in the form of a massive T-Rex spun and took off Plasmus' head with a swipe of his tail. The top half of Plasmus splattered against the wall of a building and dribbled down as Beast Boy reverted to his human form to watch. "Got him!" The bottom half of Plasmus suddenly rippled as green bubbles raised to the surface, then Beast Boy realised they weren't bubbles; they were Plasmus' eyes. "Uh oh." Beast Boy went flying back as Raven attacked with a wave of energy that simply cut through Plasmus, his body merging back together as soon as it had passed. Cyborg ran into the view, rolling to avoid a punch and using his sonic cannon to cut through Plasmus' leg, dropping the monster to one knee. Starfire halted in midair and joined her hands together to continue the Titan's offence but was blasted back with a surprised squeal as the other half of Plasmus screamed. Starfire was pinned against a wall, the ooze refusing to release its grip glueing her stuck.

"Now there's two of them?" Cyborg said, looking around, "no fair, we should get another five Titans!"

"It'll have to be just us" Robin grunted, "Cyborg! Cryo-cannon!" Cyborg levelled his arm as it transformed and took aim at the first Plasmus. It screamed and blasted itself at him, Cyborg firing at the same time. When the light had faded, Cyborg felt cold. He looked down to see the first Plasmus had indeed been frozen, but it had managed to coat him first. Cyborg had trapped himself.

"Guess it is just us" Beast Boy said, shifting into a mammoth and charging with a trumpeting noise. Raven barely had time to blink as a green hairy mammoth came flying at her accompanied by a river of Plasmus muck.

"Great" she muttered, drenched and stuck to Beast Boy as hanging wall ornaments.

Robin's teeth gritted even tighter as he surveyed his trapped friends, Plasmus stood between them, cutting him off. He extended his staff and charged with a growing roar. Plasmus responded by extending his arm towards the ground and shooting himself down a storm water drain, into the sewer. "Huh?" Robin said, momentarily confused. The next sound was his yell as the road cracked and Plasmus erupted out of it, coating the Boy Wonder. Plasmus surveyed the five struggling teens, a scream of satisfaction and victory sounding from his mouth. He regained his size again and wandered over to Cyborg. "Get away from him!" Robin yelled, but Plasmus took no notice. He raised a magenta arm and it reformed into the shape of an enormous hammer, Cyborg's mouth fell open in dismay.

"Leave them alone!" Came the shout of a different voice.

The Titans looked up to see Darkside flying through the air towards Plasmus. "Darkside, no!" Robin yelled but it was too late to stop him. A grey rune lit up on Darkside's palm as Plasmus turned and the teen thrust it into his chest. The palm made contact with Plasmus and with a burst of light, Plasmus was turned to solid stone. Darkside stood still for a moment, catching his breath in the shadow of the enormous petrified statue. The ooze that was pinning the Titans suddenly fell away from them, it had become as thin as water. Beast Boy fell the ground with a yell and a heavy thud.

"Is he… dead?" The shape shifter asked, rubbing his chin.

"I don't know" Darkside admitted, looking up. "I just did what I thought I had to."

"He's alive" Cyclops told the group, holding out an arm to read the results of his scanners. "Solid stone, but alive. He's gonna be imprisoned in that body for a long time, at least until someone figures out a way to change him back."

"We owe you our thanks" Robin said, looking conflicted. "But this isn't what we would've wanted, Plasmus is a victim of himself too."

Darkside nodded, seemingly not wanting any more elaboration. "So dude" Beast Boy started. "You just happened to have this power that could've won from the first second and now you arrive. Where were you before?!"

Darkside gestured to himself, his dark clothes were soaking wet.

"You swam!?"

"Well it's not like you guys have a public access bridge" Darkside replied.

"We uh" Cyborg started, a hand behind his head. "We have a tunnel, for the T-Car. It's hidden underneath the tower."

"Oh" Darkside said. "Good to know."

"So what was Plasmus' intent before Darkside's intervention?" Starfire asked, lowering to the ground.

"This" Robin said, picking a green gem up off the ground, the remains of Plasmus' muck dripping off it. The gem was just larger than the size of Robin's fist.

"Looks priceless" Beast Boy said, examining it up close.

"But what would Plasmus need with something sparkly?" Raven spoke, slightly removed from the rest of the group.

"A retrieval mission?" Cyborg asked.

"Retrieval for who?" Robin growled. No one dared speak the name that was hanging on all their minds.

"I fear the answer will not be revealed here" Starfire dared.

"She's right" Robin agreed, "let's go home." He looked over to Darkside. "I promise you won't have to swim this time."

Back at the tower, the team rapidly split up. Raven retreated to her room for meditations, Beast Boy and Cyborg were battling on their latest video game with Starfire offering one of her various questionable dishes of Tamaranean cuisine and becoming slightly annoyed when Cyborg declared that the loser would eat it. Robin however, was more interested in drilling Darkside for more answers. "How did you get the runes? How did you learn to use them? What's your story?"

"What's yours?" Darkside asked in reply.

Robin looked surprised, unused to being talked back to. "You seem to forget that with one phone call we can get you a nice comfy cell in prison."

Darkside shrugged. "Then do it, see how much I care."

"Why don't you care what happens to you?" Robin asked, his voice sounding bitter. "The way you threw yourself at Plasmus today, he could spit acid, he could hit you hard enough to knock you through three buildings or simply crushed you against the pavement but you didn't care, you just went straight at him, why?"

Darkside fixed him with a cold stare that matched Robin's own intensity. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"We don't have to be enemies" Robin said, extending a gloved hand in gesture. "But friends generally know who each other are."

Darkside lifted up an arm and pulled the sleeve back, revealing a rune glowing light blue on the underside of his forearm. "I'm still learning about who I am, how can you know?"

"We'll learn together" Robin promised.

Darkside looked at the rune on his arm, closing his fist before opening it. The rune brightened a fraction before fading back into his skin. "I'd like that" he finally said.

"Yo newbie!" Cyborg yelled. "You good at video games?"

"Haven't had a lot of practice" Darkside told him.

"Can't be worse than Beast Boy, get over here!"

Darkside looked back to Robin who nodded with a small smile. "Go."

Darkside left and uncertainly joined Cyborg who began to coach him through the basics of the spaceship racing game, Robin noted the half robot refrained from telling him the best tips while Beast Boy turned a shade even greener as he went at Starfire's cooking with a spoon to her unbelievable delight.

Robin watched as the door slid open and Raven walked over to stand beside him. "What did you find?" He asked. "Is he dangerous?"

"Everyone in this room is dangerous" Raven replied coolly. "But he harbours no evil intent as far as I can tell. Although…"

"Although what?" Robin asked, turning to look at her.

"I think he's a danger to himself" Raven said, "all his energy is… conflicted, I can't sense his motivations because he doesn't know them himself. He doesn't know how to be calm."

"Sounds like you could teach him a thing or two" Robin smirked at his own joke.

Raven eyed him humourlessly. "He's not coming in my room."

"He might be staying in his own for a little while longer than we initially thought" Robin said. He reached into his built and pulled out a spare communicato

r with a capital 'T' emblazoned on it.

"You're thinking of making him a Titan?" Raven asked disbelievingly. "One of us? Surely you can't trust him just because of what happened with Plasmus."

"I don't trust him because of what happened with Plasmus" Robin said in a dangerously low voice. "I don't trust him at all. But he's dangerous and we need to keep an eye on him and make sure his secrets can't harm us or anyone else." He looked down at the communicator in his hand. "This might be the way to do it."

"All I can say is if you invite him into a home and then he realises it's really a prison" Raven started, striding away concealed in her cloak. "He won't take too kindly to that."


	4. A Routine Day

Almost a week passed without incident since the encounter with Plasmus, save one alert where the Titans thought they were under attack inside the tower until it was discovered that Starfire's scream and hurled exploding starbolt was in response to sighting a cockroach in the kitchen, which she assured them resembled a carnivorous creature in some forgotten system deep in space. Robin divided his time between his obsessive study over Slade and watching Darkside, with almost no time for sleeping and eating in between. Raven was still trying to pierce Darkside's aura under his instruction but she could only protrude so far before she knew he would detect her if she went any further, resulting in frustratingly vague details for Robin. Darkside seemed to be slowly losing his moody persona thanks to spending more time with Cyborg and Beast Boy. The former he helped with the T-Car's security systems after appalling the mechanic by successfully breaking in and hot-wiring the vehicle in less than a minute. Darkside also poorly masked his amusement at Beast Boy's jokes which made him an instant best friend of the shape shifter and thanks to his history at the Steel City Diner was even able to help Starfire to use some human techniques to improve her cooking. As a trick together, they slipped some of her Tamaranean pie into dinner and didn't hear a single complaint, Darkside winked at Starfire with a smile as he ate his, making the alien princess blush with delight and pride as Beast Boy inquired if there was seconds. Robin amped up the intensity of the training sessions, pushing them all to their limits, at the end of their days the Titans were nearly dropping from exhaustion, he wanted to test Darkside, even though he had more than earned their respect in the courses. One thing became evident to the Titans over the course of those days; Darkside did not view his runes as gifts. He was constantly pulling the sleeves of his shirt lower, and never went without it. The Titans had spent the day at the beach as part of Robin's hidden agenda to study the runes further but to his disappointment Darkside did not bring a bathing suit, he simply skipped stones along the flat surface of the sea until they agreed to go back home. Beast Boy had accidentally activated the rune that Darkside had used to throw a ring of energy on training course previously with a cheeky prod. After closing his palms on the energy and detonating it, Darkside had unleashed a verbal tirade on Beast Boy, shouting him down until he was a small green mouse of meekness. Darkside had apologised a few hours later but the entire team had still been stunned by the outburst. Raven had been meaning to lend him a book she had on runes that she thought might be able to help him but had been unable to find it among the towering stacks she already kept, meaning she couldn't do anything the soothe the barely controlled rage under the surface. He was like Robin in some ways, although he was able to portray happiness for the sake of his friends much better. Starfire had become infatuated with her new friend, Raven half suspected Darkside was using a rune just to survive the hugs she would give him. Yes, he was definitely better at appearing happy than Robin was but he couldn't lie to Raven when the empath opened herself through her meditations.

Raven woke up early one morning, rubbing her head where it had lain awkwardly on the book she had fallen asleep reading in bed last night. The sun hadn't risen, it was barely lighting the dawn as she decided to go, throwing her cloak around her body against the chill of the impending winter. She entered the lounge of the tower, making her way to the kitchen where she brewed a cup of her herbal tea, a small smilie decorating her face under the hood as the aroma wafted up to her amongst the steam. She leant against the counter as she raised the cup to her lips and took a sip. The first taste almost scalded her tongue to the point of numbness but Raven kept her face emotionless, forcing another sip. The door opened and Darkside was next to wander in. That was surprising, she had expected Robin to be the next in, though his obsessions could keep him away from everything for days. Darkside mirrored her surprise, though hers was hidden in the shadow of her cowl. "Would've thought you would be meditating or something" he told her casually.

"Aren't I allowed a cup of tea once in a while?" She asked rhetorically.

"Not sure" Darkside replied without warmth, "has Robin given you the time off between wanting you to break in here?" He tapped his temple. "You're good but I've felt better. Relax" he told her nervous expression, "I'm not angry, I'd have done the same." He reached to pour his own cup of tea, traversing the distance between them.

Raven was suddenly struck by a feeling of boldness. "I did feel something" she told him, snatching his wrist. Before Darkside could resist, she twisted it, forcing him off balance and unable to strike her back. She put the cup down and yanked down his sleeve, her breath leaving her in shock and sadness that she was right. In a series of lines down Darkside's left wrist were scars, centred on the veins that ran through it. There was no question they had been self-inflicted. "Why?" She hissed.

Darkside yanked his arm out of her grip, pulling back the sleeve to cover his wrist. "I can't control the runes I don't know about" he told her. "Learning about what I can do can have consequences, serious consequences. I hurt people, people I cared about. I went to a dark place and I couldn't see a light at the end of this tunnel so I tried to empty my veins and runes just sealed them back up."

Raven was quiet for what seemed to be an eternity to her, she knew what it was like to not be completely in control of her powers and afraid of what her powers would bring but to be actually be afraid of what she could do was something she had never experienced. If she ever went too far, hatred simply took over her in the form of Trigon's red eyes and she couldn't feel a thing when he was in control. "I'm sorry" she finally said. "I know what it's like to be afraid because of what I am, what having our powers can do."

"But you know how to use them" Darkside insisted.

"My powers were given to me by my father… Trigon" she told him, hesitating a little at her father's name. "He wanted to have a connection between us so that-". She never got to finish her sentence as suddenly Darkside moved in a blur towards her. Raven felt her body being slammed backwards, her traditional clay cup of herbal tea shattering against the ground. Raven hit the wall and gasped for air, Darkside's fingers were around her throat.

"Trigon is your father!?" Darkside yelled.

"He's no father to me" Raven struggled. She tried to use her powers but the lack of oxygen made her vision blurred and she slipped out of the focus she required. "What's he to you anyway?"

"He did this to me!" Darkside screamed, the runes glowing red up his arm that extended to Raven's neck. She kicked uselessly but Darkside held her high so that she couldn't touch the ground.

"Darkside, stop!" Robin's yell cut through the atmosphere as he and the other titans charged into the room.

"You don't understand!" Darkside yelled back. "She's a servant of evil!"

"We do understand" Robin replied. "Without her, Trigon would've taken over everything, and not just the world, she's a Titan, always has been." Raven felt the grip loosen, then Darkside lowered her gently to the floor. "It's time for answers" Robin declared. "No more half-truths this time."

"How did you get your powers?" Cyborg asked, deactivating his sonic cannon.

Darkside looked back at Raven, her eyes were wide with fear and shock under the hood, her shoulders heaving to get her breath back.

"A year ago" Darkside started, "the world ended. There was… a cataclysm, the sky turned red, buildings were blackened and destroyed and people… were turned to stone." His eyes closed as he repressed the memory. Raven realised he must have seen his friends and felt a pang of sympathy, through the visions Slade had forced on her she knew what it was like to see that fate of your friends. She did not acknowledge the pang of guilt though. "I was unaffected, why I don't know, I was just alive and alone in this Hell. It was like that for only a short time but when it ended, I was taken to another Hell, even worse. The Devil took me captive, calling himself Trigon."

"Trigon still lives?" Starfire asked.

Raven answered the question for her. "Of course he still lives. As long as there is good, evil will truly never die, at least not forever."

"Then Trigon inflicted _these _on me" Darkside continued, gesturing to his runes as he hissed. "He said if he could not be in Earth, then his power would. The next memory I have was waking up in Gotham, the runes activating wildly. What happened after… let's just say that there's a reason I left." The light faded out on the runes that had brightened with his anger and he walked out, the fire had burned out in his stride just like the runes.

"Are you okay?" Robin asked as the team gathered around Raven.

"Fine" Raven replied, holding a hand to her head as she used her powers to piece back the shattered cup together. Beast Boy gave her a small reassuring smile as he grabbed a rag and wiped up the spilt tea.

"Hell of a start to the day" Cyborg muttered.

"Let us hope it does not grow any worse" Starfire said, holding her hands together.

* * *

Starfire's prayer lasted the day, but not long enough. Every Titan suddenly bolted upright in their beds as the alarm went off that night. One look at their screens told the Titans that Cyborg had issued the alert, and to meet him urgently. "What's wrong?" Robin asked.

"Security breach" Cyborg told him, fingers furiously tapping at a keyboard controlling the systems. "Someone's in the building, but I can't pinpoint where, it's like they tripped the door alarm just for a calling card."

"He's cocky" Robin growled, "We'll have the advantage."

"Uh guys" Beast Boy suddenly said, looking around. "Where's Raven?"

Robin felt his stomach lurch realising Beast Boy was right. Everyone had responded to Cyborg's signal, even Darkside. But Raven was not around. "Her room's four levels above here, she's tough, maybe she'll keep him occupied. Titans go!" The group charged up the stairs but were only met with shock. Raven's door was lying in her room in two pieces, it had been kicked in. "How did you not pick this up?" Robin yelled, turning on Cyborg.

Cyborg quickly checked his screen, "security says there's nothing abnormal here, whoever it is has infiltrated my systems!" His tone could have been mistaken for anger at the intruder for prickling his ego but they all knew better. While Robin's anger stemmed from Raven being a member of his team, Raven was like a little sister to Cyborg, and no one touched Cyborg's little sister without having a sonic blast to answer to. Beast Boy shifted into a bloodhound and quickly sniffed the ground but shook his head at Robin, there was no scent, Raven's or otherwise.

Robin's scowl grew even tighter, "split up, find them!"

The team ran to obey his order, the tower was filled with frantic footsteps and shouts of Raven's name, but she didn't reply. Robin found her locator cracked into pieces in one of the halls, the tracking signal long dead. He clenched a shaking fist and charged off, whoever was responsible for this would pay dearly, he vowed. Darkside took the lowest floor, both to work his way upwards and to escape the team, he could feel their apprehension at undertaking this personal mission with an outsider helping. "Raven?" He called out to the towering shelves of the archive, holding up a glowing rune on his palm. There was no reply and he was leaving when suddenly the light reflected off something dark on the floor. It was blood. Darkside looked up sharply, a sweep of his surroundings revealed nothing until he spotted an identical speck of blood deeper on in. Darkside gritted his teeth as he looked back at the door. He had nothing to call with for backup, he faced a choice whether to go after Raven and potentially something that could've taken down one of the strongest Titans or get help first. Darkside didn't know why but he was after the next speck before the thought was finished running through his head. He moved after the next, turning a corner, and then another, the specks turned into puddles were less spread, Raven had been slowing down as the blood had dripped out of her. Darkside turned the next corner and his mouth fell open in fear and shock. Raven was suspended against the wall, her side slashed open. Blood ran down from her body to pool on the floor. Her arms were sharply tied to the wall, giving her the appearance of being crucified. But what truly made Darkside take a shallow breath in fear were the letters scrawled above Raven's head in her own blood, _I HAVE RETURNED _and the half-black, half-orange mask strapped to Raven's face.


	5. A New Titan

Darkside's mouth hung open in shock, taking in the grisly sight before he realised he had to act before it was too late, _if it isn't already too late…_

He ran to her, throwing the yellow energy rings from his arms that blew the restraints free. Raven tumbled lifelessly from her exposition but Darkside caught her lightly. He pulled the mask off her face and threw it away where it landed with a clatter. Raven's face was pale white, she had lost too much blood already. Darkside examined the wound, it had been a single cut, deep, precise and lethal. His fingers were coated red just from brushing the edge of the wound. "Somebody help!" He cried as loud as he could, before realising that even if Cyborg had sensors down here to detect the noise, he was probably ignoring his sensors due to the fact they had been compromised. Darkside tried to lift her but she groaned in pain, forcing him to lower her back quickly. She was still alive, that was encouraging. She was too far gone to be moved however, the trip would certainly be fatal. Darkside remembered the way the Titans had charged in when he had attacked Raven, the concern and anger on their faces fearing she had been hurt. The way they both respected her privacy and constantly made sure she was alright, that was true friendship. That was something worth living for. _Something I don't have _Darkside thought, and his decision was made. His hand dropped to his pocket and pulled out something metallic. Darkside's eyes narrowed as the light shimmered down the razor blade before he put it to his wrist. He gritted his teeth and snapped his eyes shut as he yanked, feeling the blade cut deep with a wince that he couldn't hold in and came out more of a hiss. Darkside held his wrist up to examine the wound as blood rushed out and the red rune lit up, forcing the blood to slow and begin returning back into his arm. _Not me_ Darkside told the power, _her. _The lines of red light ran down his fingers where he gently held Raven and as he watched, her blood began to return into the wound which was also slowly shrinking. Blood dripped from Darkside, making him careful to avoid Raven's pool as she healed, the last thing he needed was to give her an incompatible blood transfusion. Darkside could feel his arm getting heavier, he pulled his arm that was supporting Raven to brace against the ground, he was the one becoming in need of support. Colour began to flood back into Raven's cheeks as the puddles disappeared, the wound wasn't even half the size of the slash in her robe anymore. Darkside watched the space created by the receding pool into Raven was swiftly swallowed up by the pool from himself. His eyelids felt heavy. He watched as her side closed up like an invisible zip on her skin before his arm gave out and he collapsed beside her with a gasp, feeling the darkness encroach in on him. His heartbeat was like a drum in his ears, he could hear it slowing with every thump. Darkside's chest felt heavy just from breathing. He had to hold on until someone came to get them. _Just a few moments more _he thought, _just a few… _He never finished the thought, his head rolling to one side and the last thing Darkside saw was Raven's peaceful sleeping face as he was finally swept away into the darkness.

* * *

Robin had been furious upon finding the scene down in the archives below. He had punched a wall in and gritted his teeth together so hard Beast Boy swore he could hear them cracking. Darkside had been in the medical centre for nearly two days and still hadn't woken up. They had given him a transfusion and his heart rate was holding steady but other than that there was little more to differ him from a potato, his brain activity was minimal at best. What haunted Robin though, was what he saw only as the reemergence of Slade. After a thorough search of the tower and a full reboot of the security systems, they all agreed there was no one, Slade or otherwise, in the tower who wasn't a Titan. Robin had checked the evidence file they had on Slade, he had kept it in his room always until spurred on by Starfire to store it away. Opening it, he found the mask was missing, having being taken to fasten onto Raven. "It's Slade" he insisted.

"We don't know that for sure" Cyborg argued. "It could've been just a trick to throw us off the real criminal?"

"This was Slade's MO, you heard Raven describe the terror before he got her."

"You also heard her say she didn't see anyone or remember anything after she was taken out in her room."

"Why are you so desperate to prove this wasn't Slade?"

"Why are you so desperate to prove it is?"

Raven scrunched her eyes shut tighter as Robin's yell of frustration echoed around the tower. The night had shaken her up and her meditation wasn't helping, sleeping was just too tiring to try and Starfire's squeak when Raven hadn't heard her approach had made the empath whirl around and unleash a bolt of black lightning on reflex, temporarily destroying the kitchen. Raven stared at her reflection hunched over in the bathroom mirror. Her lip curled in annoyance at a strand of violet hair that had grown a millimetre out of place and she singed it back to perfection with a finger of sparking dark energy. This was all Darkside's fault, if he hadn't had the need to just throw himself at death's door begging himself to be taken in her place she'd never have felt like this. She examined the thin scar on her side, briefly remembering the pain of the blade flashing out of the darkness, biting deep between the gap in her ribs. When she had been woken up, the silence at her demand to know who was there, the moving shadow of a figure hiding just beyond her sight, the tiny chinking as a book fell from a stack, a candle rolling off her desk and that laugh of all-knowing satisfaction before she whirled around just in time to see the moonlight glint off the swinging blade before it cut into her flesh and the rest was a haze of red. Then she had woken up in the medical bay, told she needed to rest but she knew that she was fine, and that she shouldn't have been. Beast Boy's silence as she demanded answers had been nothing compared to hers when he had moved aside to reveal Darkside in the bed beside the window, pale as a sheet with a large bag of blood feeding into his wrist. It had told her all she needed to know, and she hated him for making her feel this way, for making her feel guilt. "He'll be okay" Beast Boy reassured her. Raven felt the emotions conflict within her. She wanted to storm out. She wanted to wait by his side until Darkside woke up. She wanted him to be here with her but she also wanted him to go so she'd never have to think about him again. _Urgh, emotions suck _she thought. She'd tried to read but levitating the book to her with her unbalanced emotions caused her powers to flare and incinerate the book into a pile of ashes on the floor. _Great, another thing he owes me for_ she silently seethed as she stormed over to a stack to retrieve a book by hand, pulling her cowl even lower over her face.

"Raven?" Her communicator asked her in Starfire's voice. "Raven are you there?"

"Where else would I be?" Raven asked in reply.

"Robin wishes me to inform you that our new friend's life signs are rapidly increasing and that he will be awake soon."

"I'm on my way" Raven replied after a moment, pulling her hood even lower again.

* * *

Darkside woke to feel warmth on his face, whatever was holding him was comfortable, and he was not in pain. _I always figured I was going to the other place _he thought, opening his eyes. Standing around him were the five Titans, Robin closest on one side, Raven on the other. "You're awake" Robin said.

Darkside nodded, feeling uncomfortable with all the attention focussed in on him.

"You saved Raven" Robin continued, "if it had been anyone else who had found her she would've died. You have all our thanks."

"And you know, especially mine" Raven commented awkwardly, though her expression was unreadable under her cowl.

Darkside shook his head. "It was nothing. You guys all gave me a chance, I just wanted to do the same."

The Titans all looked at each other, silently asking who should take the lead. "We've been talking…" started Cyborg.

"A lot" added Beast Boy.

"And you have shown tremendous heroism in the face of evil" Starfire continued.

"And anyway, we'd like to give you a lot more than just a chance" Robin finished, a hand outstretched. In in his palm was a Titan's communicator.

"You want me to join you guys?" Darkside asked in disbelief.

"You've been a friend to the Titans" Cyborg told him.

"And we'd like to be friends with you" Beast Boy told him.

"Please accept, please accept" Starfire pleaded with her eyes shut in delight.

"I already painted your name on the bedroom door" Cyborg told him.

Darkside found himself smiling. "Then I suppose I don't have a choice then, do I?" He took the communicator from Robin's hand, it was a perfect fit inside his tattooed palm.

"Congratulations" Raven told him drily, breaking her silence. Despite her tone, Darkside swore for a moment he could see the faintest traces of a smile playing around her lips.

"Am I allowed to get out of here?" Darkside asked, gesturing to his bed.

"Should be alright" Cyborg told him, "as long as you take it easy until your arteries are back at maximum, no training for a couple days."

"We'll give you a moment to change" Robin told him, leading the Teen Titans filing out.

"Raven, wait" Darkside started, reaching out and grabbing her hand. If there ever was a contact with sparks between two people, Darkside would've sworn this was it. Raven didn't tell him but there actually _had _been sparks between them, but that was because her emotions were momentarily torn between her heart swelling and an anger telling her to slap him into another dimension for that act.

"Yeah, I'm not terribly good at this…" Raven started. "But thanks. I'll buy you a pizza sometime, that always works with Beast Boy."

"I'm not Beast Boy" Darkside told her.

"No you are not" she agreed, her tone of voice wasn't negative. On the contrary, there was something quite curious about it. There was a moment of silence between them, then Darkside felt Raven's fingers wrap around the hand he was holding hers with, then it seemed like for friends they had been holding on a bit too long. "I better leave you alone" she said, hurriedly walking out. Darkside watched her go, then grabbed his clothes, noticing they were slightly different. The holes were gone, the material was lighter and the clothes were leaner, no longer baggy as they wrapped around his muscles. The communicator fit perfectly into a new space on his belt.

"How do you like the uniform?" Robin asked.

"Super lightweight, triple weave titanium polymers, this stuff is almost up to scratch with Robin's cape!" Cyborg said, obviously very proud of his construct.

"I do hope I got your measurements right with the sewing" Starfire fretted.

Darkside calmed her with an easy smile. "You got them perfect" he told her, making her smile even more.

"There's one more thing" Robin told him. "Being a Titan means a new life, a new identity. Since Darkside isn't your real name or your choice, we were wondering if you wanted to choose a new one?"

"I can choose a new name?" Darkside asked.

"Of course dude! Do you think my name is actually Beast Boy?" The green teen asked sarcastically.

"Cyborg would've been the most coincidental name ever if I had been born with it" Cyborg added.

"So we no longer care you were" Robin told him.

"Only the person you want to be" Starfire finished.

Darkside looked at Raven and sensing his invitation, she carefully penetrated his mind. He asked her opinion and she agreed. The newest Teen Titan looked down at his hands. "Rune" he finally said, "my name is Rune."


	6. Something Illogical

Rune was an instant fit at his new home, learning and adjusting to his friends' routines, Raven's morning meditations, Cyborg and BB's video game wars, Robin ignoring lunch to study up on a new lead until Starfire would bring him food and refuse to leave until he ate it. The pair had grown considerably closer since Tokyo but the entire team could sense Starfire wished for a greater commitment than Robin could give. Sure, they held hands, had their cute whispered conversations of sweet nothings when they thought no one was watching but as far as any official confirmation as to whether they were officially a dating couple or not; there was nothing. Robin gave too much of himself to his work it seemed, to be truly able to give himself to Starfire. Still, to the Tamaranean's credit, she did not push Robin. She simply accepted his routines and tendencies and continued with her life, waiting for that day when Robin would be able to set down the cracked Slade mask and take her in his arms instead. Rune made up his mind to keep his head out of that drama, just because they had invited him to stay didn't mean that he was welcome just anywhere. Robin had taken Rune back to his room the moment he could to get answers. Rune found it was easier to just retell the events simply, as if he had been watching from over his his own shoulder, though it was still difficult to describe the moment he had seen Raven, in truth it had stopped him from sleeping on a few nights afterward. Robin's hand clenched tighter and tighter around one of his bird-a-rangs until the metal buckled under the strain of his grip. "It's Slade" he kept muttering, "there's no other possibility."

"What does he want?" Rune asked.

"Power. Control. A legacy" Robin told him. "It looks like his current plan to achieve that is through the use of these." He held up the large gem they had retrieved from Plasmus.

"'These'?" Rune repeated. "There's more than one?"

Robin nodded. "There's three, they're part of a set called the Ascent Trio."

"Weird name."

"According to legend these were the crown jewels for the three crowns of angels" Robin snorted. "But brought together, they allowed an individual to ascend to Heaven and receive powers, serious powers."

"Slade doesn't seem like the type to go chasing after witch stories" Rune said skeptically.

Robin nodded in agreement. "Which makes Slade's quest to get them all the more interesting, I highly doubt the story but if Slade's chasing these it makes me think he's found something out that would validate the legend of power."

"So if the intruder really was Slade, why didn't he take this gem?" Rune quizzed.

"Because I moved it" Robin replied. "And the main safe where it would've been normally was broken into. I haven't told the team."

Rune felt a worm of unease move through him at the mention of secrets. He had his own of course but to be included in actively deceiving his new friends wasn't something he wanted to do a week after meeting them. "So we have one, where are the other two?"

"One is part of a moving precious jewel collection" Robin told him, "scheduled to come to Jump City soon, undoubtedly Slade plans to hit it before it leaves. The other is… missing."

"Missing?"

Robin nodded with a sense of glumness, as if he blamed himself for not knowing Slade's plan sooner. "I made some inquiries, stolen as of a month ago. Not a whisper about it since."

"So which will Slade go after first? Ours or the collection's?"

"Slade's not stupid, he'll know we're at our most paranoid right now, he wouldn't try again for the Tower for a long while."

"So he's going to steal from the collection…" Rune drifted off, studying the expression beyond Robin's mask, "…and you want to steal it first."

"If we could guarantee having both gems in our possession, Slade would have to come to us" Robin explained, "we'd have the advantage."

"Didn't you try this out before?" Rune asked, unconvinced. "I've been hearing talk amongst the team since Slade became a topic, something about a 'Red X'?"

"That was a mistake" Robin growled, "not one I want to repeat but we need to stop Slade getting his hands on this gem at all costs."

"So why are you telling me this?" Rune asked.

"Because I've been watching you work on the T-Car's security systems" Robin said. "And you have a past history as a criminal, I'm going to need your experience and a partner if I want to succeed at this. This would be a black op, no one else can know but us. Are you in?"

Rune waited for a long moment, Robin was leaning against his desk kneading the knuckles of both his hands into the surface. Rune remembered Raven suspended with blood running down, Slade's mask hiding her face save for one violet iris, near lifeless. "I'm in."

"Then take this" Robin said, holding out a book.

"What is it?" Rune asked, flipping it open.

"I took it from Raven's room when you came to us" Robin told him, "it's all about runes, what they can do, I figured you could use some study material, maybe learn some new tricks."

Rune was already absorbed in the pages. "Some of these I haven't woken yet" he said, amazed.

Robin nodded in thanks and respect. "You have homework. Get to work, when it's time, I'll get you."

Rune left to find Raven outside waiting for him. "So was your first interrogation at the hands of the Boy Wonder?" She asked him.

"Something you're familiar with?" He asked.

She nodded, "just a few times, trying to find a weakness in preparation for the battle with Trigon." She softened her words at the end of the sentence to try and keep Rune calm. "And you were interviewed about Slade, I can't imagine that would've been fun."

Rune flashed back to Robin's offer. "It definitely wasn't what I was expecting" he conceded.

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously, "something you should tell me?"

Rune remembered the weight in his hand. "Yeah, he stole your book" he told her, turning away and hoping the concealment worked. A black spark flicked around Raven's fingernails in annoyance at Robin as Rune walked away. Partially because he had omitted part of the truth, she knew a feint when she saw one and wasn't buying that he had told her the whole truth for a second. Predominantly though, she was annoyed that he had managed to brush off his near full sacrifice so easily, like it meant nothing. To Raven, it meant everything. She had always had a difficult time believing she deserved friends, deserved kindness and her friends had always surprised and touched her with how much that they were prepared to give for her. But they were her friends, she had known them for years, they had history together but even though she knew they would make the same sacrifice for an innocent, she wasn't innocent and Rune had known it. He had known she was the daughter of Trigon who had made him suffer through his powers and he had been prepared to die for her anyway. _Why!? _Raven didn't enjoy this feeling of debt she owed Rune, it went deeper than just taking a hit and she couldn't figure out what the feeling he made her feel was called. There was guilt, fear, sadness but they were mixed in a tidal wave of sympathy, happiness and hope. He made her feel so much just by ending a conversation nonchalantly with her, what would she feel when they made eye contact? The spark from her fingernail shot out of her fingernail as a bolt, scorching a line up the wall beside Robin's door. Raven gasped, she needed to meditate before thinking of Rune made her obliterate something. Floating in the lotus position in the safety of her room though, she couldn't help but feel an apprehension about Rune slipping into her mind. Rune bore the Mark of Scath on his back, she would've recognised it anywhere, it had been a part of her for so long, literally branded on her forehead at a time. His contact with Trigon was what she had felt that day in the park, it was their connection, so why did she feel there was more to it than that? He had true hatred for her father, of that she had no doubt but at the same time, she had also witnessed villains control others against their will previously, Robin's forced apprenticeship to Slade came to mind. _Slade. _It all came back to Slade. Was it possible he had returned? He had not shown any personal interest in her previously, even acting as Trigon's herald, while he most certainly had enjoyed his work he had kept reminding Raven about the simplicity of his work, there was no centric passion for hurting her. She had stolen an image from Rune's mind when he had been at his weakest in the medical bay, she had to see. The image of herself displayed on the wall had made her fall in shock, it was just like the mind games Slade had a taste for. The image flashed through her mind and a vase shattered on a desk. Raven sighed, _sift out the emotion _she told herself, just like all the times before. "Azaroth Metrion Zinthos" she said, and instantly her ribs seemed to loosen around her lungs for her next breath. Raven felt the world beginning to melt away from around her and be replaced by the landscapes of her mind. She opened her eyes, even after defeating Trigon, the world she saw was still Limbo, this Hell she had always come to. Raven looked around the empty world, devoid of life. "Gather!" She called out. One by one, various shapes came into focus, varying in colour but all the same body. The yellow cloak of intelligence. The green cloak of bravery. The orange cloak of laziness. The grey cloak of timidity. All her. "All right" she started, speaking loudly to drown out the chatter. Timidity shrank back at the sound of her voice. "This is why I'm here. All of you have been at war over Rune. I want to know who wants what and why, let's solve this before I break something valuable."

"Just ignore it" ventured Timid, "maybe the feeling will go away."

_What feeling?! _Raven wanted to shout but that would certainly be the wrong response to this emotion. "You spoke first" Raven said instead, surprised. "That's new from you." Timid's eyes went wide and she clamped her hands over her mouth with a squeak. "Well I guess we won't have any more contributions from her" Raven noted, "anyone else?"

"It could be a suppressed feeling of guilt…" Intelligence started before her voice became just a blur to the normal Raven as the words began to be no less than ten letters each. "…As a result of the oxygen deprivation to the brain stemmed from the catastrophic blood loss." Intelligence finished.

"Right" Raven said, looking at her cluelessly. The Raven with the purple cloak began to open her mouth before the real one silenced her with a pointed finger. "Don't even say it" she warned Passion, "everything you say will just make things worse, you were probably the one who started all this."

"Why shouldn't she speak?" Bravery suddenly challenged. "What you're feeling isn't logical, that's why Nerd and Squeaky can't help you." Intelligence turned a mottled shade of red in displeasure while Timid buried her face deeper into the grey folds of her cloak.

"Interesting" Raven mused. "So what do I do?"

"Something illogical" Bravery said with a smile.

Raven looked back to Passion who winked at her. "That's a bad idea" Raven immediately said.

"Do it" Bravery urged. "Just give it a shot."

Raven sighed before looking up at a crack in the sky. It was time for her meditations to end. She looked around and finally realised what had been right in front of her the whole time, or rather what hadn't been. "Where's Guilt?" She asked.

Passion smirked. "Who said anything about you ever feeling guilty?"

_Great _Raven had time to think as she opened her eyes to her room around her, her emotions suppressed once again. She let her feet touch the ground and left her room, Bravery cheering her on. She sighed, it was time to do something illogical.

* * *

As she chanted, Rune was busy getting to work. He wouldn't dare tear the pages from Raven's book but he needed to have all the runes where he could see them. He didn't even need to look at the runes in his skin to recognise them in the pages, their shape had been carved into his mind by the pain of their carving in his skin. Rune opened the book to a new rune he hadn't used before. The book was incredible, it showed the rune, described the its effects and most importantly, ways it could be unlocked. Rune grinned as his middle and index fingers glowed a bright red, then he moved to the wall and ran his fingers along it, leaving a black trail that smoked slightly as he left it. He looked at his work with a satisfied expression, then moved to draw the next rune beside it. He started large but then realised he would quickly run out of wall space. After flipping, inverting and drawing the runes to fit every corner, he began on the ceiling. It wasn't until a couple hours after he had started that the room was full, from the ceiling to the walls to the floor as Rune sat cross-legged in the centre of his room, twirling fingers finishing the last rune as he leant back and examined his work, the contents of the book now spread out across the room. He sat for a while admiring his work before there was a knock at the door. Rune twisted his arm then waved it through a move before his elbow glowed a dark green and the runes proceeded to fade from view. He grinned as they became invisible, happy that he was gaining new powers without anyone being endangered as he clambered back to his feet to answer the door. The door slid open with a hiss to reveal a single Titan hidden in her dark blue cloak. "Raven?" Rune asked.

Raven didn't reply, her hands suddenly shot out and grabbed Rune by the face. Before he could protest, she had pulled his face down and pressed her lips hard against his. Rune's heart did a backflip and skipped a beat as she suddenly let him ago.

"What was that f-"

*WHAM*

Raven's slap hit hard across the face. She had used her powers to strengthen the blow and it had hurt, it had knocked him to the ground. Rune shook his head to clear his fogged vision as Raven stood over him. "That's for saving my life" she told him. "Don't do it again!" She added, her voice raising in anger. And before he had a chance to reply she had swept around and vanished back down the hallway.

_What the hell was that _Rune thought, _and why the hell did she have to stop?_


	7. The Heist

Raven refused to even look at Rune the next few days, much less talk to him. He had tried to get her to open up to him a few times in those days but she simply ignored him, which was incredibly frustrating. Robin had been having meetings almost daily with him as well, briefing him about the security systems of the museum and how they were going to pull the heist off. Rune had paid careful attention but it was so easy to be distracted by the memory of Raven's kiss… the strength and impulsion as she pressed her lips against his, the need behind it… then there was the second wave, where they passed the point where breaking the kiss was acceptable and she had softened but her lips had not left his, they had stayed, lingered, for just a fleeting moment more before she had broken it and attacked him as if he had barged into her room and kissed her instead of the other way round. He wasn't overly keen to seek advice either, Cyborg would probably attack him, Beast Boy would tell everybody in Jump City about it and he didn't want to go to Starfire with romantic issues when she was bogged down with her own. Rune was almost praying for some kind of fight or catastrophe to occur just to have an excuse to hit something and feel like part of a regular team again. The closest he had come to realising that wish was turning up to a bank robbery turned hostage situation, the criminals instantly surrendering when the Titans had turned up so he hadn't been allowed to hit them, as much as he would've wanted to. Rune trained almost as much as Robin to occupy his mind, where their leader found the time to study, train, perform an acceptable amount of social interaction with the team and sustain himself was secret Rune didn't believe he'd ever find out, Robin could rub two minutes together and make an hour out of each. To his relief, no one in the team seemed to pick up on the friction between him and Raven, he caught a few frowns from Beast Boy of all people but nothing came of them. It seemed like without Raven life had just stopped, like she was the last missing piece of a puzzle and all he was doing was taking and replacing pieces just to fill in the time before that piece came back in again. Rune was near sleep in his room, begging for it to take him so he could finish another useless day off when his communicator suddenly buzzed loudly. Rune scrambled in his sheets to reach out and grab it. "Yeah?" he asked the screen.

"Robin here" the communicator told him, they were talking via private channel, no one else could hear them. "It's time."

Rune sat up sharply. "I'm on my way" he replied, grabbing a shirt hanging off the corner of his bed. He pulled it over his muscular form before grabbing his pants and fastening them up before quickly leaving the room. The door slid shut behind him then a black ethereal raven floated up into his room through the floor. It wrapped back into Raven who opened her mouth only to see an empty bed. She closed it, then her eyes as well in disappointment before the black raven enveloped her once again and dragged back down from where she had entered.

Rune met the Boy Wonder down below who mounted his R-Cycle. Rune looked at him uncomfortably. "Just do it" Robin told him. The frantically paced journey was not made any more comfortable to Rune by the fact he had to wrap his arms around his leader's torso to prevent himself from being thrown off the back as Robin whipped in and out of traffic.

"You know, for a crime fighter you sure as hell break so many laws when you drive" Rune commented as he got off the back shakily once they had stopped.

"And I don't even have a licence" Robin grinned.

Rune stared for a moment, this was a game to him he realised. Robin was excited at the challenge of stealing the next gem. Rune shrugged off the growing gnaw of doubt and looked up at the museum, the stoic stone columns seems highlighted against the pitch black sky. "I thought the gem wasn't due for another few days" he asked.

"It wasn't" Robin replied. "But I made an anonymous tip-off that a thief was going to target the convoy it was being transported on so they moved it to the exhibit early in secret, the convoy is going to be a trap. With any luck, Slade may hit it and the authorities will solve that problem for us."

"Doubtful" Rune remarked. "Nothing is ever that easy."

"No" Robin agreed. "But we're the only ones who know it's here and that's a precious amount of time that we have the jump on Slade, I want to take advantage of it before he even hears a whisper about the gem."

"No point in standing around then" Rune said, "let's get to work." He ran to the drain pipe and started to shimmy up whilst Robin flew ahead tethered to his grappling gun. He had already cut a hole in the rooftop window by the time Rune had made it up and slipped inside. Rune jumped in after him and pressed his palm to the catwalk they had landed on. He felt the energy pulsing in his skin as he willed it do what he asked and a moment later, the grid of red lasers became revealed to his eyes. Robin lowered the full spectrum goggles to help him see, having pilfered the design from Cyborg's robotic eye. Rune had warned him about the theft escalating to the team and Robin had promised to destroy the goggles personally after the mission was over. Rune dusted his palms as he looked at the energy he had exposed and then he and Robin split up. Robin taking the acrobatic route, contorting his body in and out of the lasers while Rune took the unprotected circuit box to begin crossing wires. If it detected deliberate sabotage, the system would activate the alarm but to steal the gem, they were going to need to stop the system from sending a confirmation request to security when Robin deactivated the security grid. Rune grimaced, given the choice he'd have Cyborg go at something like this but they were just two and Robin had the better skill set for avoiding the lasers. After making the switches, Rune made the last connection and sighed with relief when the light stayed green. He closed the box and grinned as his phone (Rune didn't bring any of his Titans equipment) received the confirmation request which he promptly accepted. Robin walked in and Rune jumped down to him, the pair making their way as silhouettes through the building. Rune was made nervous by the T-Rex skeleton reaching for him in the dark but Robin took no notice, following his memorised layout of the blueprints.

"There" Robin pointed as the two rounded a corner. In the centre of the room they had entered was the gem. It was in a glass case on a small pillar nestled in red velvet. Robin moved to the pillar and attached the small computer which latched on and a combination of numbers and letters began flashing across the screen, ever changing. _When we get to the gem, don't get excited and just rip off the glass case to grab the gem _Rune remembered Robin's lecture coming back during one of their meetings. _The gem in plain view is a fake with a tracker embedded in it, another precaution. The real gem is hidden inside the pedestal with a state-of-the-art electronic lock. I'll use a mini-computer to hack it, we take the gem and disappear before anyone's any the wiser. With any luck they won't check until it's the night before the exhibition by which after those few days our trail will have gone cold. _Robin knelt down to the computer and looked back at Rune. "It's complicated, should take us about two minutes."

"That's all the time I'll need" purred a voice from the shadows that didn't come from Rune. Rune wheeled round in shock but Robin stood and took two aggressive steps towards the disturbance.

"Slade."

"Hello Robin" the mastermind acknowledged, taking a few steps to come into view. Rune inhaled sharply, he had seen that mask before. It was strapped to Raven that night in the tower. It was what Robin obsessed over all those days shut up alone in his room. Robin was right, it was Slade. Slade was back.

"What do you want?" Robin asked angrily.

"The same thing you want" Slade replied casually, his voice neutral and devoid of emotion. "The gems of the Ascent Trio, you did very well to hide the second one from me in your tower."

"You son of a bitch" Rune growled, stepping up to stand with Robin, his anger motivated by Slade's actions at the tower.

"Ah the new Titan, so eager to be accepted he's thrown himself at the chance to be Robin's lapdog" Slade continued, one eye turning to look at him while his voice continued, never missing a beat. "Usually it's Robin playing the sidekick, but it's good to see things change every once in a while."

"You left Raven to die" Robin managed, his anger almost seemed to surpass Rune's, neither of them wanted to do anything less than to tear Slade apart.

"I had to leave a calling card" Slade taunted, "you didn't call, didn't write, you even began to obsess over me for less than four hours a day Robin, I was afraid you were beginning to forget me, and we couldn't have that."

Robin took another step forward. "Your plan won't work Slade, we'll stop you." Rune looked to the hand that Robin had put behind his back. Though limited to a few gestures, he managed to convey the message to Rune perfectly. _One minute. Then we get the gem and get the hell out of here. _

Slade didn't move in any way but somehow he just radiated amusement, like the two young men could hear Slade's muted chuckling. "Oh Robin, how can you stop me from having free reign of the city when you can't even stop me from having free reign in your house?"

"Your arrogance will be your undoing" Robin told him. "You're so wrapped up in your own plans you can't see that you're not the only player at this game."

"And yet I'm here despite your attempt to lure me to the ambush in the convoy" Slade countered, "the members of which have all met a rather explosive end I'm afraid to say."

Rune felt his stomach go cold. Had Slade really killed them all? From Robin's warnings and lessons, he knew that Slade was certainly capable of perpetrating such an act but it still sickened him. The computer suddenly beeped shrilly behind him and suddenly three figures broke out into a sprint. Rune instantly turned on his heel and sprinted for the real gem that was now exposed by the panel sliding open halfway down the stand. He heard a whistling sound as a disc spun through the air then Rune's chin hit the ground as a coil of string wrapped his ankles together, causing him to fall. Rune shook his head, he could taste blood in his mouth from biting his tongue and could hear Robin shouting as the two fought. Rune untangled the rope and looked up to see Slade slam Robin into the ground. Robin looked up as Slade raised a boot but suddenly flew off to the side as Rune hit him with a hard tackle. "Get the gem!" Rune yelled as Slade was cleared. Robin ran with his hand outstretched for the gem but as he was an inch away, a black hand pulled the gem away as a figure flipped over Robin and snatched it first.

"Getting slow bird boy, need to lift your game" an artificial voice told him.

Robin looked up to meet the white mask of his past staring back. "Red X!" He yelled.

Red X held up the gem and gave it a little shake. It was the exact size and shape of the green gem but this one was red. "I hear these things are getting kind of valuable, thought I'd grab a slice of the pie."

"You've got no idea what's at stake here!" Robin yelled, "this isn't the time to get ideas about personal finances."

"You act like I need this" Red X sneered. "I don't need it, I want it. I'm not stealing because I need to, I'm doing because I'm good at it, and the thrill…"

Robin didn't wait for him to finish, swinging his staff trying to knock the gem out of his hands. Red X was too quick though and pulled back out of reach. Robin's next swing passed through air as Red X blurred before disappearing. "Nice try lads, better luck next time" the mocking voice echoed through the museum. Robin turned to Rune who was standing back from Slade, the new Titan sporting a bleeding lip and a bruised eye as well as nursing what appeared to be a few broken ribs.

The moment was shattered as police sirens suddenly burst out and the room began to flash blue and red. Rune whirled around in shock, "This was a set-up!"

Slade chuckled, backing up into the shadows. "You lay your traps and I lay mine. Moves and countermoves Robin, that's the game. So wrapped up in your own plans you can't see you're not the only player at this game."

Robin growled at having his own words served to him as Rune looked to him. "Dude this isn't good. We need to get out of here right now."

Robin nodded and the pair ran, but they were already too late. "Freeze!" A policeman yelled. In a second he had half a dozen more officers at his side.

Robin and Rune looked at each other dejectedly before raising their hands. _I can't let this happen _Rune thought as he looked at the look of resignation on Robin's face, then a mad idea came to him. Rune bent his arm and slammed his elbow into the side of Robin's head. "You aren't catching me today Titan!" He yelled, grabbing Robin and throwing him at the officers before running.

"Bring him down!" He heard a shout, then gunfire erupted and the wall beside his head began exploding. Rune ran into the next room and almost straight into an officer. _The worse I act the more convincing I am_ he thought, snatching the gun and backhanding the officer. He moved to the next one and hammered him with a volley of punches before escaping with a series of flips to avoid being shot. Rune cleared another room with relative ease, these officers may have been SWAT but slam one's head through a glass case or into a wall and they fall unconscious just the same. Rune was almost thinking his plan wasn't going to work as he seized a gun and pointed it at a museum guard before a bird-a-rang flew out of the air and knocked it out of his grip. Rune just had the time to grin before the guard fired his taser and Rune fell the ground convulsing. Rune had just enough time to see Robin helping one of Rune's victims before he was dragged back to his feet and a pair of handcuffs were tightened around his wrists to the point where they almost were cutting the skin. "You were lucky. We ran his face and saw you guys already took him down a while ago." An officer told Robin as they watched Rune get pushed into the back of a police car. "We were thinking you two were together until the coward showed his true colours and attacked you like that. Jump City almost declared Robin a public enemy, wouldn't that have made a bad night."

"Yeah" Robin agreed absentmindedly, his head swirling by what Rune had done to take the sole blame. Rune met his eyes from inside the car gave a small wink before he was driven away. "Almost."


	8. Crime and Punishment

Rune sat at the table in the police interrogation room, head slumped forward both from tiredness and the lack of general motivation to keep it up. They had been holding him for hours, trying to sweat him out after he told them his initial story. _I'm a drifter, I got hitched by the Teen Titans but I broke out and tried to rip off the museum to make some cash to get the hell out of the city. Had a nice little look-round but the spiky-haired dude got me and we had a fistfight, that's it. _It wasn't a great story by any means but he hadn't had the time to come up with anything better so he just had to run more lies through his mind to patch the holes in the story. The security system coming down, he could blame that one on the Red X guy, make it look like he followed in Red X as an opportunist and got caught out for it. He could maybe escape with a trespassing and a breaking and entering charge, small fine and on a train to nowhere in particular before anyone has time to blink. That's what he would've done before, before he had friends but now it was all different. Rune sighed and rubbed his eyes groggily, he couldn't leave the gems, couldn't leave Slade to wreak havoc, the team to fight the mastermind without his help, _I couldn't leave Raven, _the thought pierced through his mind like an arrow. Shit, he still had no idea where they stood, she had kissed him, slapped him then ignored him for days unending. Sometimes missing out on a normal teenage life was a blessing. Unbeknownst to him, five teenagers were watching him through the one-way mirror window, they had all come at once after Robin had called them, he had confessed to everything, though they still remained doubtful about Slade. "The jewel is missing and with no Red X or Slade, they'll want to make an example out of him" Cyborg warned, another simple fact they stated to remind Robin of his mistake.

"He will not escape without severe punishment" Starfire added, worried. It was not his fault, she blamed Robin for dragging him into this. As much as she loved her boyfriend, she was not blind to his faults and knew his indifference to employing questionable means to accomplish his goals was a dangerous combination when it was combined with his ability to rally someone to his cause. She had flown ahead of the team and met Robin on the steps to the station. Embracing him gently and kissing him even gentler, Starfire felt Robin almost crumble into the hug, he had failed miserably and they both knew it. The T-Car pulled up moments later and Starfire felt Robin stiffen once more, he was their indomitable leader once more, not her boyfriend. She sighed as the team gathered and joined Robin as the proceeded to watch Rune wait his judgement in the interrogation room, alone. Raven hadn't spoken a word but Robin could feel her trying to bore holes in the back of his head with her glowering stare. Every time she saw Rune she remembered their kiss, how she had done it simply to satisfy passion but after she had done enough, she had relaxed and realised she was slightly enjoying the feeling of her lips against hers. The taste of his lips, the surprise melting into something… else, the feelings in him were stirring even more in her. She could feel Passion brimming with delight as her cheeks flared up red and her hand had raised itself unbidden to hold him to her. Sensibility had broken back into her mind and she had quickly broken away, the hand left with nothing to do but to strike him to excuse itself for raising towards his face. Then she had left in a hush, her cheeks going an even deeper red and her heart hammering in her chest. As soon as she had rounded the corner she had leant against the wall to take a few deep breaths, disbelieving what she had just done but not entirely regretful. Every time she had seen him afterwards he had raised inquisitive and thoughtful eyes towards her, wanting answers. Raven wanted to tell him but those every meeting with those eyes raised those feelings in her again and Raven knew she wouldn't be able to wouldn't be able to talk to him without her tongue betraying her feelings to him and she had fled when she could and blatantly ignored him when she could not. She could see the confusion and seeds of hurt in his eyes and felt the feelings mirrored in herself but forced herself to conceal them, swallowing it all back down with another mouthful of herbal tea. He made meditation particularly difficult for her, she often snapped at herself in her head. _You are the master of your own feelings, control them and get over this little crush! _Returning to Nevermore hadn't helped either, Passion was so full of herself that eventually Raven almost lent strength to Anger before leaving her mind with even more pent up frustration than before. After accidentally vaporising a pillow she tried to fluff with her powers, Raven sighed amongst the shower of feathers and tried to get some sleep, knowing that Passion was practically dancing a jig inside her own head, running rampant and knowing it. Now she was staring at Rune who was hiding his own emotions in a mask in the room and she was wondering if she would ever have the chance to unravel those feelings, because of Robin's schemes.

"We could break him out" Beast Boy suggested, "it's not like anyone here could stop us."

"That would just be making us criminals" Robin brushed him off. "If Rune wanted to break out of here he could've done so easily himself. He made that sacrifice for me and becoming criminals ourselves would be doing him a disservice."

"He shouldn't have had to make a sacrifice at all" Raven cut in coldly.

Robin turned on her. "What do you want to me say Raven?" He demanded. "I made a gamble, it didn't pay off, are you happy?"

"You didn't gamble" Raven replied testily. "You made him gamble for you so he would take the fall if all went wrong."

"I didn't make him do anything!"

"Oh please, as if the new member a week into being inducted into the Titans felt like he had a choice when the immortal leader involves him in secret plans. You backed him into a corner."

"This isn't about him!" Robin's voice was raised, putting the Titans on edge. Raven didn't drop her furious gaze though, her voice cold and steely. "This is about stopping Slade!"

"And you'd sacrifice any one of us to meet your goals" Raven accused, her voice cutting like a knife.

Robin stared at her for a brief moment. "Take a walk" he told her, "come back when you've cooled off." She stormed out through a portal in the door, not bothering to actually open it. Robin looked at the others. "You're free to go with her."

Cyborg laid a hand on Beast Boy's shoulder, "come on, we'll calm her down a bit."

"What?" Beast Boy exclaimed. "We can't leave…" Cyborg nodded towards Robin who was facing the window with his shaking fists clenched, Starfire slowly approaching him with an outstretched hand. "Oh" he realised before giving a nervous laugh. "Yeah we'll check on Raven" he excused, leaving the room with Cyborg.

"Robin?" Starfire asked as she laid a hand on his shoulder.

"Star" Robin said as he held her hand in his against his shoulder. "I fucked up. I made a mistake, I let my hatred of Slade blind my judgement and now Rune's taking the blame for me. This kid's barely known us a week and already he's nearly killed himself for us and is preparing to take a fall for my mistakes. What am I supposed to do?"

"I don't know" Starfire told him as she gently tugged on his hand, pulling him around to face her. She could see every line of worry, of guilt, of doubt etched into his face and the same emotions behind his mask, even if no one else could. "Robin" she whispered his name pulling him into a hug. Robin buried his face into her shoulder, taking deep ragged breaths that shook his body a little with every exhale. He eventually pulled himself up to look her in her gorgeous green eyes. "What would I do without you?"

"Date Kitten" she joked.

Robin's jaw dropped in mock horror. "I already am committed to one psychotic villain obsessed with me in Slade" he told her, "I think that's quite enough." Starfire giggled and Robin kissed her. "I will find a way to make this right" he promised her when they had broken and rested their foreheads against one another. "From the start when I saw him as an experiment, you saw him as a person and I ignored you. I saw him as a means to my ends tonight and again I was wrong. I'll fix this, then we'll go after Slade." They turned to look at Rune who somehow seemed to know and waved at the window understandingly.

"Come" Starfire said, gently pulling him. "He will be fine for a few hours without us, let us go home."

Robin looked once more at Rune. "Okay" he consented, pulling open the door and walking out after Starfire.

* * *

Rune breathed out deeply and put his feet up on the table, if they were going to make him wait then he would wait damn comfortably. He had almost managed to snooze when a guard walked in, "time to go", he raised a key for Rune's handcuffs. Rune held up his unshackled wrists and threw the open cuffs to the guard who looked at them.

"What?" Rune asked the guard who seemingly didn't know how to react. "Leave me in a room for five hours I get bored." Rune was then escorted to the garage under considerably heavier guard to an armoured truck. "Where are we going?" Rune asked uncertainly.

"Transfer" was all he was told before he was roughly pushed into the back of the truck and five guards took the vacant seats around him. Were the Titans behind this? He knew Robin would be smart enough to abstain from getting directly involved but this wasn't regular routine, something was actively happening here. If the police system wasn't hard to hack, Cyborg might be erasing his charges but that wouldn't explain why he was being transferred instead of simply released. Rune's eyes looked side to side and landed on a guard's weapon in his lap, the finger resting on the trigger. Rune swallowed a lump in his throat and forced him to remain calm, these guards did not have good intentions for him. Rune straightened his back and flexed his fingers, preparing to activate a rune to pop the cuffs. He needed to mentally map how he was going to drop five armed guards in the confined space before any of them got a shot off and escape. The truck roared into life and into the light as it left the underground garage. Rune forced his heartbeat to slow as he closed his eyes and began to think. Rune had mentally got to four of the guards when a distinct change in the sound made him open his eyes. The noises of the tires against the ground, they were on a rural road. _This isn't a transfer _Rune suddenly realised. This was an execution, they were going to drop him in the middle of nowhere and put a bullet in his skull. Rune mentally calculated and estimated they had been driving for about two hours. He didn't seem to be the only one noticing the duration of the trip. "Hey Mick" a guard yelled through the grate to the driver's cab. "Where exactly is this place?"

"I don't know, I don't see nothing" the driver called back. "Might a glitch with the GPS system, we might turn back."

Rune had just enough time to be confused before there was an explosion, the ceiling became the floor and the world went black.

* * *

"What do you mean he's not here?" Robin demanded, leering over the counter at the front desk to the desk sergeant.

"I mean he's not in our system" the desk sergeant repeated, stammering as he checked the screen blankly telling him _No results found _for the third time.

"I saw him this morning!" Robin told him loudly. "He was in Holding Room Four!"

The sergeant revised the search with the new information but shook his head. "No prisoner of that name was in Holding Room Four, or any other room for that matter.

"Arms covered in tattoos" Cyborg told him.

"Shaggy black hair" Beast Boy added, morphing into a dog to demonstrate.

"Very athletic build" Starfire contributed.

"Violet eyes" Raven ventured.

"Our friend" Robin finished, not slightly amused by this game.

The officer shook his head in a stupefied fashion. "I only started my shift an hour ago" he blabbered, "haven't seen anyone like it."

"Well find us someone who has!" Robin ordered.

The officer almost looked like he was beginning to melt under Robin's glare, indeed, there were two growing patches of sweat growing under his armpits. "All I can do is tell you there was a prisoner in Holding Room Four, but not your friend" he told them. "Says this guy was convicted of murder, assault, rape, aggravated assault, he attacked a girl and killed two cops."

"Where is he?" Robin demanded.

"Says he was transferred about two hours ago" the officer told them.

"Robin" Cyborg said, arm outstretched. He was remotely accessing the building's surveillance system. "It's him." Robin and the others watched a recording of Rune being loaded into a truck on the screen on Cyborg's arm. "Someone hacked into the police computers and changed his record" Cyborg said, "including the transfer."

"But why?" Beast Boy asked.

"To get him out a fortress filled with Jump City's finest" Starfire said.

"Is someone breaking him out?" Robin asked.

"Or are they looking to just break him?" Raven said, her gaze coming to rest on Robin.

Robin gritted his teeth. He rounded back on the desk sergeant. "Where was he transferred to?"

The desk sergeant seemed to shrivel as he processed the new request for information. "Maximum security penitentiary but…" He trailed off.

"But what?" Robin demanded. He seemed to be inches away from grabbing the officer and shaking the answers out of him.

"It never arrived."

Robin felt a familiar weight crash on his mind. "Communications?"

"Uhh…" the desk sergeant said, pushing his seat a bit further back from the computer. "Non responsive."

"I can track it but only just" Cyborg said, "it must be pretty badly damaged."

Robin was already halfway out the door and running for his R-Cycle. "Titans, go!"

* * *

Rune gritted his teeth as he woke to feel nearly his entire body in pain. _Pain is good _he told himself, _pain means you're alive_. He wished there better ways of life telling him he was alive. Rune pushed himself off the gravel road, there were a number of cuts bleeding from his face, hands and generally everywhere. He opened his eyes to see only blurry images but he could make out enough to see random scattered fires around him, as well as a major one burning from the remaining black cab. Rune dragged himself along the ground towards it, recollecting the events before he had blacked out. There had been an explosion and the truck had flipped. Then the back doors had blown off while the truck was in midair and Rune and all the guards had been thrown out before the truck had exploded again, this time with a much larger force. Rune's vision was good enough that as he dragged his way closer to the prison van he could make out the shape of the body. It was lying slumped halfway out of the destroyed windscreen, the fires had burnt the flesh black. Rune pushed himself away in shock and felt his fingers dip into something sticky. He pulled them up to his eyes to see them wet with red. It was blood. Rune looked slowly, eyes following the puddle until they saw the body of the guard it stemmed from, one of the five who had been thrown out with him. Rune looked around in shock as he saw all of their bodies scattered around him, limbs bent at unnatural angles like broken toy dolls. Rune forced the bile to remain in his stomach, what the hell was going on? The sound of footsteps reached him as there was suddenly a yell and a piece of the truck that had flown off was suddenly kicked out of the way as a figure in black made its way out of the fires raging around it. Rune recognised the figure immediately. "Slade" he gasped, "…how?"

"Don't be impressed" Slade told him. "It was so easy to hack to police computers and truck GPS systems it was almost beneath me."

"But why?"

"You have something I want" Slade told him, taking a malevolent step forward. Rune began to shuffle back, his legs refused to stand.

"Red X took the gem" he exclaimed.

"I'm not talking about the gem" Slade said, still getting closer. He stepped over a body without breaking his stride.

"I don't have anything!" Rune cried, still frantically shuffling back but Slade was catching him easily.

"Oh yes you do" Slade purred, kneeling look him level in the eyes. "You have what I gave you."

"I've never seen you in my life before" Rune said, panicking.

"You didn't have to see me" Slade said reaching for him but whirled suddenly as the was a roar and the shadow of a motorcycle blocked out the sun. Slade looked to see the three bird-a-rangs flying through the air, two of which he dodged and the last he caught. "Robin" he said, crushing the projectile in his grip. "Come to be embarrassed once more?"

"Not this time" Robin growled, moving in. Slade easily dodged and avoided Robin's attacks but the Boy Wonder did succeed in putting himself between Rune and Slade. Rune shook his head, he had to get his focus back, Robin couldn't fight Slade alone, he was outclassed both physically and mentally. Slade allowed Robin to push him further back as Robin pursued him until they disappeared from Rune's sight. Rune struggled to stand but barely made it to one knee before he toppled over again.

"Rune! You must stay down!" Starfire's voice pierced through the air as he caught him from the hitting the ground roughly again.

Rune heard the sound of kicked-up gravel as the T-Car skidded to a stop behind him. "No" he pointed after Robin through the smoke. "Robin…"

"Who caused this destruction?" Starfire insisted, unwilling to leave Rune for the moment. Beast Boy flew over as a pterodactyl and with an powerful aimed flap of his wings cleared the smoke obscuring their view just in time to see Robin catch the adversary with a figure with a spinning kick to the jaw. The figure raised himself to one knee, readjusted the mask on his face and turned to face the group facing him. "Him" Rune whispered to Starfire, levelling an accusing finger.

"It's not possible" Cyborg said, shocked.

"Hello Titans" Slade said, before booting Robin in the stomach back into the midst of the group. The team had just enough time to look up to see Slade had thrown a disc after him that exploded with a flash of light.

"Argh!" Starfire cried out.

"My eyes!" Beast Boy shouted. About a minute later, their vision wore off from the shock save Rune's to find Slade had disappeared.

"He's really back" Cyborg mused in shock. He had been the biggest pillar of resistance among the Titans arguing against Slade's return so he had been sobered the most by the sight.

"And we have to stop him" Robin told them. "Together."

"And what about me?" Rune asked, near blind. His eyesight had been affected worse than any of them as his eyes had been slower to adjust to the light, it would probably take days to recover.

He fumbled blindly before he felt a hand take his hand lift him up off the ground and wrap it around a slim bodice. "We take you home" Raven's voice spoke to him.

Despite the cuts, the blurred excuse of eyesight and the enormous amount of fatigue and pain he was in, Rune found he couldn't think of the situation as anything else than perfect.


	9. Searching Cities and Souls

The sighting of Slade had everyone worked up, but everyone reacted differently. Cyborg almost seemed to shut off his emotions, he worked at the console with wires plugged into every socket, tracking down any lead. Beast Boy was much simpler, increasing his diet to include about three times as much as tofu and telling about three times the unfunny jokes. Starfire was unused to to the kind of espionage so she made it her business to help others and occasionally went for flights over the city to check for anything out of the ordinary, as impossible as it was for Slade to make a mistake so basic. Raven was usually found consulting her tomes for any sort of edge or in meditation but she was found spending a curious amount of time with Rune in the medical bay who had a thick layer of bandages around his eyes. "Do you find it as annoying as I do that I have spent more time in this bed than I have in my own?" He asked with a smile.

Raven looked up from her book she was sitting with beside her bed and tried to smother a smile.

Rune grinned. "I heard that."

"I didn't even make a noise" Raven protested.

Rune shrugged. "Too bad, I heard it and you practically just admitted it."

"For your information I am researching a particular spell I think would be useful" Raven told him, flipping the next page extra loudly just to prove her point as she kept searching. "Slade likes to taunt us with robotic forms of his likeness, I think there's a spell that could reveal to me where Slade is if I had one of his clones."

"How?" Rune asked.

Raven looked at him for a moment before setting the book down and pulling the chair closer to him. "A long time ago, in a dimension quite like this one, a sorcerer painted a picture of himself and gave it to his wife. He had to leave for a long time and didn't know where his journey was going to take him. She worried for him so he enchanted the portrait so that she would be able to see him through it whenever she so desired, so that she would know he was safe. The technique has gone through a few series of uses, like a person would wait at a location, their friend would use the portrait to see where they were and go to meet them."

"And you think you can use that to catch Slade?"

Raven shrugged. "Well his robotic clones are built to look exactly like him, to sound like him, to fight like him. It's not exactly a portrait of him but it is his own image so I figure while it may be bending the rules a little, the spell might just work."

"It'd be nice to end something quickly for once" Rune remarked, fumbling for the bottle of water on his bedside table. His fingertips clumsily shunted it where it fell over and rolled off. "Dammit!" Rune cursed, clenching a hand into a fist and turning away. Raven's hand on his face made him turn back.

"Drink" she whispered as he felt the bottle against his lips.

"I'm not a baby" he told her but gratefully took a long swallow anyway.

"You're welcome" she told him, making Rune flinch. Her voice was barely a whisper but he could hear her so clearly. How close was she to him? He could hear her quiet breath, her head had to be inches from her, where were her lips? Raven ran her hand down his chin. "You need a shave" she told him.

Rune reached up to feel for himself but his hand caught hers instead. There was a moment of silence while Rune held her small gentle hand in his. Her fingers were long and graceful, feeling like they possessed the dexterity of a concert pianist whereas Rune's were course and rough, more suited to blue collar labour. "Rune…" she said, her voice drifting off.

"Raven" he said in the same tone. "I need to know. That kiss…"

"…was just a kiss" she interjected, cutting him off. "I'm sorry it happened."

Rune was silent for a moment before realising she was expecting him to say something. "Okay." It was all he could manage whilst holding his emotion back.

"Good" Raven said awkwardly, pulling her hand free from his grip. "I need to check another book," she told him, "I'll probably be in my room for the night."

Rune nodded. "Right" he told her, sitting up for her leaving.

"Get some rest" she told him, "you'll be out tomorrow." The door closed behind her.

Raven closed the door then pressed her head against it, Passion going wild with rage at what she said was starting to give her a headache. She took a sharp breath in, and left, clutching the book tightly to her breast and walking a lot faster than she did normally.

Rune fell back against the pillow with a sigh, she and he both knew it was for the best but the the same time he felt like she ran a knife across his face instead of a hand. He traced its path with his finger and had the briefest smile, he _did _need a shave. The smile quickly vanished as he remembered what had come after it. He groaned as he tugged a little at the bandages constricting around his throbbing head but Raven had told him the bandages wouldn't come off until tomorrow morning. Rune reached for his bottle trying to have something to do with his hands but swore with a lot stronger language as he only succeeded in hearing the bottle hitting the ground once more. Feeling completely and utterly useless without Raven beside him, Rune laid back, pretending to watch the sunset out the window he pretended he could look out.

* * *

Rune was tearing at the bandages around his eyes the moment he awoke, quite literally as he managed to accidentally give himself a scratch beside his right eyebrow. After completing Starfire's tests to confirm his vision was back to one hundred percent, Rune made his way to the lounge and met up with Robin. The Boy Wonder looked uncomfortable for a moment before starting. "I just want to say…"

"Save it" Rune said, silencing him. He had just enough time to be surprised with the authority in his voice before he kept on talking. "It doesn't matter now. How is the search going?"

"No sign of either Slade or Red X" Robin told him. "Cyborg hasn't found anyone looking to sell one of the gems so we can assume Red X is waiting for the heat to die down before he sells it onto a fence. Slade is untraceable."

"Agreed" Rune said, "We won't be able to interfere with Slade until he wants us to, until then Red X is our best and only shot at getting another of the Ascent Trio. Next thing is my current status with the authorities."

"Already sorted" Robin told him. "Due to the horrendous computing error, lack of proper protection and the threat of a legal team the calibre of Bruce Wayne's, the police graciously decided to drop all charges considering you didn't actually steal anything."

"One problem out of the way" Rune said, allowing himself a smile. "So what's our next move?"

"For now we keep the search up" Robin said, "while combatting the more regular crime. We're going to have one Titan patrolling Jump City at all times, with all the recent unrest, we don't want some opportunist thugs deciding to lend a hand in spreading anarchy. Beast Boy is in town now, Starfire is with him."

"So what can I do?" Rune asked, desperate to have a purpose again.

"You get the short straw" Robin told him, sharing a grin with Cyborg. "Raven's not been herself lately, she tries to hide it but her powers have been more unstable as well, despite her increased meditations. You get to play confidante, ask her what's wrong."

Rune groaned internally at the prospect of having to put himself in such a personal situation with Raven so close to her shutting whatever connection they had down. "And it has to be me because…?"

"You're the guy she likes to talk about least" Cyborg called over his shoulder with a tone indicating he was very happy not being in Rune's shoes. "If anyone needs bonding time, it's you and her."

Rune rolled his eyes, "this is so bullshit" he muttered as he left the room.

Reaching Raven's room, he hesitated before pressing a hand the door and leaving the imprint of a rune on it. He waited for a moment before the rune pulsed, giving him an image of what was inside. Rune braced himself, then walked in quietly. Despite Raven sitting in her lotus position, he knew she wasn't meditating. "Sun's up" he told her. "Haven't seen you at breakfast."

"Meditation can prolong the duration for which I can go without sustenance" Raven told him in a tone that sounded annoyed. "Why are you in my room?"

"Not my idea" Rune said, looking around. Since Raven could levitate she had no need for chairs so the room was devoid of any real place to sit, and Rune thought it would be a tad audacious to move for Raven's bed leaving him with no real choice but to awkwardly stand. "But you've been avoiding me, and everyone has noticed. They want us to figure out whatever this is."

"There is no issue between us" Raven replied evenly.

"Is that lie meant to fool me" Rune asked, "or you?"

"It isn't a lie" Raven said, grit entering her voice.

"Ah" Rune said with a mock understanding nod. "You."

"There is nothing!" Raven said, her voice escalating to a yell for the last word. A black shockwave flew from her body and threw Rune back across the floor. Immediately she turned around with a hand flying to her mouth in horror. "I'm sorry" she blurted, "I didn't mean…"

"You treat all your house guests like this?" Rune asked, allowing her to help him up. Despite the diction, his tone was forgiving with the slightest touch of cheek.

"Usually just Beast Boy" she replied. She looked around at the mess her room was in thanks to the shockwave. She sighed, thanks to her powers' recent unpredictability she would have to clean this mess by hand later. "My powers are throwing a small tantrum, I should meditate."

"And how's that working out for you?" Rune asked, making Raven sigh and scrunch her eyes shut.

"What do you want from me?" She asked, letting her voice reveal the tiredness she felt.

"I want you to talk" Rune said, crossing the distance between them, she took a step back. "If you feel like I am right now then you feel every time we talk there is this damn… something hanging in the background that we feel like we need to hold back but frankly I don't want to!"

"But that's the difference between us" Raven told him sadly. "You don't want to, but I have to." She turned from him and resumed her pose.

"I don't believe that" Rune told her, not letting her go. He sat down beside her. "Controlling your emotion is not the same as stifling them, you don't have to be cold to be in control, that's Slade, not you."

"But you give emotion an inch and it will take a mile from you" Raven turned to face him. She remembered Passion screaming at her to traverse those lose few inches with her lips in the medical centre, this was only going to lead to the same sort of mess, she knew it. "I don't have enough to give."

"Because you refuse to take" Rune insisted. "You remind me of me in some ways."

"We aren't alike" Raven immediately replied.

"Because opposites attract?" Rune asked.

"What?" Raven asked, caught off guard. Rune grinned and Raven felt a blush flare up in her cheeks that not even her cowl could entirely obscure. She couldn't believe she had been caught by the line lamer than something that Beast Boy would usually come up with. "So how would would you tell me to control my emotions instead of stifling them?"

"Well it's like being stuck in a plane for hours, before you're ready to sit back down and be small, you need to stretch and be big, then you're able to relax."

Raven rolled her eyes. "I feel like I'm talking to an oversized fortune cookie."

Rune grinned. "I'm no less sweet" he told her. He leant closer in.

Raven didn't move away as he kissed her lips softly. He leant back slightly and pulled back her hood, revealing her reddened cheeks. He brushed a stray strand of her violet hair out of her face. "Better?" He asked her.

Raven briefly retreated into herself to find the throbbing in her head subsiding, her breath coming easier. "Yeah" she said, surprised.

Rune smiled, "happy to help" he told her. He prepared to stand but she reached out and held his hand preventing him from standing. "Raven?" He asked.

"I was wondering" Raven said, looking at the ground. Her hair fell back out to hide her face from him. "Could you stay for a while? Maybe we could… do it again? Just once" she breathed as Rune leant back in quickly, his hand stroking back her hair as she elevated herself and leant forward against his chest. Rune's hands fell to hold her back and body close to his as she grabbed small fistfuls of her hair as she kissed him again, Passion growing stronger inside her with every taste of his lips. Her lips gave way to Rune's tongue as it penetrated her mouth and began wrestling with hers. Usually just the thought would have made Raven shudder but instead she pressed her tongue forward in return as she pressed Rune's shoulders back and they leant back to the point where she was on top of him. Rune's hands ran up and down her sides, every touch of his palms made that part of her skin explode with warmth whilst the rest of her felt cold by comparison. Rune rolled her over deftly and broke the kiss much to her initial disappointment but the first kiss to her neck made everything more than forgiven. Rune kissed his way down the side of her neck with delicacy, but there was also strength in the way he held her yet pinned her. Raven arched her back and her head feel back to see the door behind them making out on the floor. _If anyone walks in, we'll definitely be able to tell them we solved any problem between us _ she thought. She could feel Passion beginning to burn out all her other emotions, filling her breast with heat and desire. It was beginning to become too much she realised, they had gone too far. _Do I care? _She wondered but sense took control of her lips as they stopped her next moaned exhale of air. "Wait" Raven started to say. She had more questions before she was ready for this. _You lost so much, endured so much, how can you be normal? Why doesn't it haunt you? _Rune stopped immediately and looked up as she brushed his face but Passion flared, being given more power than even Raven had expected. Unbidden, her powers jumped the physical bridge between Raven and Rune and broke into his mind, very unlike the gentle viewing she had done with Robin years before. Rune was unprepared for the mental assault and gasped as Raven took control of his mind. Images began to flash in Raven's mind, memories that were not hers. A laugh as a black silhouette shared a sunset with him. A flash of fear as a red sky raced toward them. A moment of horror as his hand reached towards the girl frozen in stone. Loneliness as the world of death never changed. Hope as the blue sky raced back towards him and panic as he disappeared. A scream as his hand was covered in fire and his mind was going wild spasming in unfathomable pain. Bewilderment as the hand bore a glowing symbol etched into his palm. Raven felt horror creep into her as she relived a dozen more memories, hope, happiness, fear, sadness and guilt. A twisting burning sword of guilt driven deep through her heart. Raven had grown up being told it was her destiny to destroy the world, she had lived believing she would be the harbinger of the deaths of the people who meant the most to her; her friends. And yet she had never felt a guilt like this. The last the thing she heard was the screaming before she was pulled from Rune's mind. She breathed in sharply and sat up off the floor. She looked around wildly before the sound of shaky and fast paced breathing caught her attention. Rune was a few metres away from her, he backed away until pushing himself up against the edge of her bed. His face was white, he was covered in sweat and his knees were up around his chest and his eyes shimmered with the images she had forced him to relive. "Rune" Raven said, her voice soft and touched.

Rune ignored the gesture, shaking his head as he stared at the floor. "I didn't know I had still had those" he said in a shaky whisper. Raven moved to reach him, to comfort him, to tell him everything was okay but the male Titan saw her hand come up and flinched away from it. "I have to go" he told her hurriedly, standing up and retreating as quickly as he could out the door. Raven was left sitting on the floor of her room covered in books from toppled stacks, repeating the same two terrified questions in her head over and over again, _what have I done? And what was done to Rune?_


	10. Rage and Other Broken Things

Rune offered to take the next shift on the city patrol, replacing Beast Boy. He kept going for the shift immediately after as well, despite two messages from Raven to take his place and more than a dozen calls through the night which he had ignored. Jump City was a haven compared to some places such as Gotham but look hard enough and you could still find crime in one of the many dark alleys this city had to offer. Rune hopped from rooftop to rooftop, traces of Slade or Red X were next to nothing so the Titans had quickly relegated their patrols to simply the crime centric areas. If they could spread word that the Titans were cracking down on crime of the non-super element, they could hope that the latest spike of crime would die down. Rune was so wrapped up in his own thoughts he forgot to acknowledge in the exhilarating feeling of running across the rooftops, planting one foot after other and taking the leap to the next roof should have felt like sticking up a middle finger straight to Death's face but there was nothing. Rune stopped as he ran out of buildings and leant down to his knees, surprised at the exhaustion in his breath, he must've run near two dozen entire blocks. Cursing himself for his idiocy, Rune began to run back the opposite way, this time paying close attention. He could feel the bags growing under his eyes and the heaviness growing in his limbs but he paid it no mind, the only thing that remained with him were the visions Raven had put him through. He had buried those memories a long time ago, left Gotham, abandoned his old life, he had died that day, and Darkside was born. _I wasn't the only one who died that day _his brain reminded him. Rune gritted his teeth and struck out at the closest thing within reach, in this case a TV antennae that lost signal for the twelve apartments in the building under his feet. He leapt a few more gaps before his body demanded rest or his lungs would burst. Rune sat down, his legs hanging off the edge of the building, watching various bugs fly around the bright bulb of a street light below. His communicator buzzed and he flipped it open. "Report" Robin's voice barked.

"Nothing happening" Rune told him, "just me and the moths. Not the killer monster things like Silkie" he added quickly.

"You sound tired" Robin told him. "Come back to the Tower, I'll have Cyborg replace you."

"I'm fine" Rune told him. "I'll return at sunrise."

"But-"

"Sunrise" Rune repeated, cutting him off. He killed the transmission. The communicator buzzed a second later and Rune checked it again, this time it was a message, from Raven. _Please, come home._

Rune shook his head and deactivated the tracker, he knew she would be monitoring his location to see if her message worked, and that she would come to him if it didn't. Rune got back to his feet despite his need for more rest and decided to move on when the whispers of a protest and a scream reached his ears. Rune turned and listened harder. _Single female _his ears told him, _intoxicated, physically struggling. _He knew there was a less-than-glamorous nightclub in this vicinity, he'd been thinking about trying to score a gig as a bartender there before he'd accidentally blown up a car with an awoken rune and triggered a fight with five teenage superheroes. Running towards the sound, another voice reached a voice. It was a man's. _Aggressive, dominant. _There was another element to it as well. _Lust. This is no mugging. _The man's voice slithered into Rune's ear and almost made him physically wretch. "Let me go!" The woman screamed. Judging by the pleading tone in her voice, she was obviously overpowered, Rune knew that the begging would only encourage the man. He leapt the last rooftop and looked down into the piss-stained alley below. A blonde in a mini skirt and flimsy shirt was being pinned by her wrists to the wall by a man in a brown leather jacket and cap. He had dark greasy brown hair and a smattering of facial hair. He was desperately trying to kiss her, slathering his tongue over her lips, neck and ear lobes despite her struggling feebly against him. The small neon pink sign of the bar's back door dimly lit up the vile scene. Rune vaulted down off the fire escape and landed light enough to avoid injury but heavy enough to make a sound loud enough to disturb the man's escalating attempt. Rune's face was hidden in the darkness and he wanted to keep it that way. This man had really picked the wrong time to piss him off, Rune had a lot of pent up anger he wanted to let out. "Let her go" he called.

"Or what?" The man called in return. He had drunk enough to become foolishly emboldened and his pride was not about to be sacrificed to the smaller silhouette. "You gonna try and stop me?"

"Yeah" Rune replied grittily. "And you're really going to regret making me."

"I think you better get out of here before I wipe this alley with your face" the man told him.

"That'd be impressive to see for a guy barely struggling with a wasted ninety pound bimbo."

The man's smirk quickly melted away. The girl, obviously terrified of this ominous stranger, tried to pull away but the man slammed her back against the wall and slapped her hard across the face. Rune reached into his pocket and his fingers pulled out a blade, it was time to end this. He saw the silhouette of the man's hand beginning to roughly force its way up the girl's skirt and he threw the first one. The man cried in pain and retreated a few steps before looking at the razor blade that was sticking out of his wrist, he winced as he yanked it out. Blood poured out of the cut half an inch deep. "You're going to pay for this you piece of-"

Rune's next blade slicing a line under his eye interrupted his next curse word, ironically eliciting an even worse word from the man.

"You're going to pay for that!" He yelled.

Rune didn't react. "I'd go home if I were you" he told the girl. She nodded and backed away. When the man didn't speak he continued. "That wound on your wrist will require a doctor" He said. "You leave now to seek medical attention and that can be a peaceful end to the night."

The man took several breaths through his gritted teeth, his breath turning to steam in the alley. He looked to be imitating a bull before charging. _And I've already beaten one of those _Rune thought. Sure enough, the man charged with a roar and hail of spittle flying off his trembling lip. Rune didn't move a muscle as the man charged at him, he just stared and waited. At the last moment, Rune nimbly stepped out of the way and the man crashed through air tumbling to the ground in a heap. He pulled himself back up, his jacket stained and his pants soaked from the roll across the dank corridor. Rune watched the man get back to his feet, breath punctuated by inebriated mutterings. He ran at Rune trying to tackle him but the Titan replied by slamming an elbow down into his back before lifting a knee that connected solidly to man's jaw. He stumbled backwards, dazed, recovering only in time to be knocked straight back into confusion as Rune hammered his jaw with a roundhouse kick straight out of Robin's book. The man went down to one knee against the dumpster, regaining his breath. Rune thought he was about to concede defeat as the man checked the trail of blood dribbling from his lip but that was misconceived as the man reacted in even further anger seeing blood on his fingers after wiping his face. That's when the knife came up. Rune heard it before he saw it. The unmistakable click of the switchblade, he knew it well enough from when he had one himself during his… darker moments. The glint of the steel flying towards his gut in the dim pink light was all Rune needed to switch off the higher thought processes and just operate solely on instinct. The same instincts that had spent all day sweltering in guilt and sadness that had since soured to anger. Rune seized the man's wrist stabbing forward and twisted it away. The man hissed in pain and dropped the knife but Rune didn't stop there, he couldn't. He twisted the wrist a degree further, snapping the bone as the man cried out before gagging as Rune struck him in the throat with stiffened fingers with his other hand. Still holding the wrist, Rune delivered two shots to the gut and an uppercut to the jaw, knocking the man back onto the ground dazed and confused. Normally Rune would've left the man far before there, but not this time. Rune knelt down, pressing a knee into the man's sternum as he grabbed the man's collar and punched him in the face. The man blinked, trying to gain a sense of his surroundings. Rune hit him.

And hit him.

Again.

And again.

The man's nose broke with a messy squirt of blood that Rune felt splatter on his own face. Rune didn't care though, he couldn't care. The thought of what this man was going to do to the woman was filling his mind and driving his fist. The girl screamed and ran to Rune, screaming at him to stop but Rune unintentionally struck her pulling back his fist and she fell away. Rune felt distant, far away, as his anger flowed out into unmaking the scum before him before a voice called out his name from underwater. _Rune… _Rune kept hitting him.

"Rune!"

Rune woke up, his arm coated and petrified in black energy. From the sky, Raven floated down, her eyes glowing white. "That's enough!" She commanded.

Rune looked back to the man beneath him. What was remaining of his teeth were covered red with blood pouring out his mouth. His nose was nearly completely destroyed, similarly bloody and his eyes had rolled back in his head as he hung limply from Rune's hand. Rune looked at his right fist, it was messily splattered a sloppy red with blood and saliva as it dripped off his knuckles slick with it. Rune quickly pressed his fingers to the man's neck; there was a pulse, but only just. "Call an ambulance" he ordered the girl who was watching terrified from behind the dumpster. She nodded and began to fumble in her purse. Raven released her the energy she had holding his arm and Rune stood, chest heaving both in exasperation and in shock at what he had done. "Get me out of here" he asked Raven quietly. She nodded as a black raven of ethereal energy spawned from the shadows of her cloak and enveloped them both before flying away into the night. Rune shivered as she released them on the shore of Titan's island, the towering 'T' standing in shadow above them held no protection from the late autumn wind. "Why are we here?" He asked Raven.

"Because you need to talk" she told him. "I went into your mind, unintentionally, but I did. No single person can hold that much pain, what happened to you after the world ended? You told us how you got the runes but nothing between there and turning up in Jump City." Rune ignored her as he picked up a stone and hurled it into the bay. Raven watched him for a few moments. "Will you ever tell me?"

"I don't know" Rune admitted, "forever is an awfully long while to make a promise for."

"And where does that leave… us?" Raven asked. The word sounded foreign on her tongue, alien, it had never belonged to her. All she knew was Rune had this way of grinning and her heart was immediately doused in impassioning flame, it was infuriating. It was also dangerous, the way her emotions could so easily get out of hand around him, she needed control, she could never act on wild impulses without someone else being forced to suffer the consequences. Beast Boy had berated her so many times about why she acted so cold and moody but he didn't understand, he would never understand, not without understanding her past and despite his reassurances that she was sure he'd spurt if she told him so, he would never understand. Rune could though, he had been a facet of Trigon's schemes once upon a time, he knew pain, he knew having abilities that he could see as a curse, not a gift. Was that why she felt the way she did for him? Because he was the first person she thought maybe had a chance of fully understanding her and so now she was throwing herself at him to keep him to stay? Raven shook her head angrily. _I will not throw myself at anyone. _But then the memory of how Malchior had manipulated her so easy, she had shut herself away in her room for weeks on end dedicating herself solely to helping him free from the confines of his book only to find he had tricked and used her for her own gains. She couldn't believe Rune would do that to her but coldly, she realised she could believe that he might not be totally sorry even if he did.

"I think…" Rune started, interrupting her thoughts. "I think maybe friends is best for everyone, lot less chance of getting hurt that way, and the stakes are lower."

Raven closed her eyes, his words made sense to her head but came like a lance to her heart. Why did it feel like that? _Damn him! _She cursed mentally. She felt like slapping him again. But she did not. She betrayed no emotion inside her, wrapped up in her cloak fluttering softly in the wind. "I thought so too" she replied. It was true technically, she did think friends was best but Passion was whispering in her mind that maybe she didn't want what was best for everyone, and Passion was being annoyingly convincing. Rune nodded and Raven turned away to walk back up to the tower as Rune hurled a rock with a lot more strength behind it as he imagined the rock being all the situations that were forcing their into his mind telling him how things could go wrong if he stayed close to Raven, he wanted them gone. She was beautiful, even she didn't see that herself, she was hopeful and reserved, considerate of others before herself and was able to not take others seriously, particularly Beast Boy but it was still a trait that made a small grin decorate his face whenever they were in the same room. _But I can't… _The memories Raven had forced up flashed again through his mind, him screaming at the silhouette to stay away with a hand covered in flashing lights of alien designs carved into his flesh, she was torn between her safety and her care for him, then the lights exploded out of his flesh and there was that piercing scream through the air, that scream… Rune tore himself away from the memories, breathing hard as the first bead of sweat began to trickle from his temple. Rune knelt down at the water's edge and splashed some up into his face, forcing him to cool, even though the night was already cold. He looked back down at his reflection and quickly turned away, following the path after Raven, needing a decent sleep as the first lights of the approaching dawn began to creep over the horizon.


	11. The Story of Darkside

Rune didn't talk to Raven much over those next few days, as though wishing to leave those old memories behind, threw himself into being the best friend he could be towards the other Titans. He was frequently found ogling over Beast Boy and Cyborg's video game battles, declaring that he would take on the winner. He let Starfire teach him how to take care of Silkie which in turn gave her more time to be with Robin which she had admitted thanks, a quiet thanks but a thanks all the same. Coming out of their failed heist Robin was a lot less of a Titan and more of a friend, something all the Titans took notice to. All except Raven. She had committed to leave the memories of her and Rune together behind by exactly the opposite approach, becoming a recluse in her room and losing herself amongst her books and meditations. Sometimes she would go for days without emerging, sustained solely by her meditations and retreating back into her hideaway if anyone tried to talk to her. Rune couldn't help but feel guilty for how Raven had reacted, but knew any move he made to try and cross the bridge he had burned between them would only lead to more pain on her part, he could only hope she found a plane of peace within herself and found it soon. Rune trained extra sessions with Robin when he could, he didn't want to admit but in his weakened state, Slade had struck a fear deep inside him and he had to convince himself he would be ready next time. What was Slade talking about when he said he wanted what he gave to Rune? Rune had gone through all his possessions and found nothing of any particular worth, they were all his personal items from a lifetime ago. Rune had never seen Slade, not even when he had been Trigon's mercy and Slade had been allied had they ever met, the riddle was driving him mad. He felt the marking in his skin, Slade couldn't take Rune's powers, his supernatural abilities were disconnected when Trigon had turned on his pawn. Slade's attack culminating in Raven's brush with death was what gave him friends, a home, a place in the world where he fit, he suddenly realised. Rune didn't know why but he clicked, Slade was looking to crush the newest Titan, the one he saw as weakest. He would focus on Rune to lure the rest of the Teen Titans into his web and then he would tear down everything Rune held dear. He had wanted Rune, anyone to be inducted into the Titans so he could tear them apart like he had done so spectacularly with Terra, only this time he wouldn't make the mistakes that she did in letting them live. He would handle this personally, starting with Rune. _No _Rune thought, his hands a blur as they struck the training dummy at various points while Robin watched carefully. _I won't let Slade beat me, I won't be the reason the Teen Titans fall, I will not be weak. _The dummy's body gave under his next blow as his fist drove through and carved out a section of the torso and sent it skittering across the floor with a collection of dust and dummy stuffing. Robin surveyed the body with wide surprised eyes. "Remind me not to piss you off" he told Rune.

Rune looked up as he removed the wrappings from around his knuckles. "Advice best left for Slade" he replied.

Robin studied him hard for a moment. "I've been where you are, no one knows what that state of mind is like better than me. There are only two things you should remember to keep you on the right path."

"And those are?"

"Make sure not to let determination become obsession and remember that victory is not the same as supremacy."

"Meaning?"

"Raven told me what happened when you went out on patrol."

Rune kept his silence but gritted his teeth.

"She didn't tell me much" Robin said, "but I understood enough. Death isn't what we do, it may be easier to justify when you look at the, frankly, shit-stain security record of Jump City's detention facilities but it isn't the answer."

"How many people could have survived if you put enemies in the ground?"

"Death didn't stop Slade."

Rune hesitated, then let his shoulders sag as he conceded Robin's point. "So if you had the chance you'd let Slade go over killing him?"

This time it was Robin's turn to drop his eyes. "Honestly, in that situation I don't know what I'd do, but when I look for Slade, I'm not looking to kill him." Rune nodded before wiping his face down with the towel, despite his increasing strength and endurance, Robin still always stretched him his limits. "We're done for today" the Boy Wonder told Rune, "go grab some rest."

"And a change of clothes" Rune muttered, leaving as Robin grabbed a broom. He was passing Raven's room when her door suddenly opened and her indigo-sleeved arm shot out and grabbed him, pulling him inside. Rune fell to her floor from both a mixture of surprise and exhaustion as the door closed less than a second after it had opened. He looked around to find Raven and his jaw dropped in shock. Her room was a mess, there were black marks scorched up the walls, books were lying in pieces everywhere, abandoned pages lay atop each other to create a new carpet, there was an enormous spiderweb crack in her window and her bed was lying against the wall, it looked like it had been thrown. "Raven, what happened?" He started wildly, looking around but instead of an answer, Raven flew at him out of the shadows, her expression set in an expression of anger and horror and terror, like a ghoul trapped.

"What happened to you?" She demanded, grabbing his head with both her hands, fingers latching on like claws. "What am I feeling, your memories, they're…" She trailed off as suddenly her eyes flickered into glowing white and her ethereal raven stole her away, flying away for a second before disintegrating into shreds and the real Raven flew out of its remains and slamming against the wall it had flown towards. She grunted as she hit the wall hard before rolling onto her front with a groan. She gathered herself to be hunched over her knees on the ground and Rune could see her cloak had been torn and burnt in various places.

"Raven!" Rune exclaimed, running over to her. Intuition came to him as he suddenly dived to the right and a black lightning bolt flew out of her body, burning the wall with a bang. "Raven!" Rune called out again, running and skidding on his knees to be in front of her. He pulled her face free from where she had it buried in her hands to see hot tears running down her cheeks. The streaks on her face told Rune this had been going longer than just today. Suddenly he realised, looking around, why Raven had been so reclusive.

"I can't control it" Raven told him desperately, feeling more tears welling in her eyes. She felt so ashamed, she had never lost control like this since she had been a child, never once since reaching maturity. Even the time her powers had manifested through her fears was nothing compared to what she had done, she hadn't caused any physical damage but now, she was a wild force of destruction. "I need to understand" she begged him. "My powers are controlled by distance, calmness but I can't keep what I saw inside. Please, help me understand what I'm feeling, what are these memories?"

Rune felt his insides clench, the empathetic bridge Raven had accidentally created had transferred more than just memories, she had siphoned off the emotions he had buried along with them. Taking those memories had caused her to dip into those emotions and caused an already unsteady cup to overflow, a tendril of black lightning the excess. He felt guilty, he had pushed her away like he had pushed everyone before, remembering that doing so had led him to attempt suicide, more than once, the scars on his wrist a testament to that. He had given those feelings to Raven and then pushed her away, leaving her to fend for himself in that storm, he felt ashamed, one look in her eyes told him how much she had been torn up inside. It was miraculous she had held it together despite adding his weight to her own, and he could easily tell she had more than her fair share of mental demons, as well as literal ones.

"Okay" he told her eyes as they lit up once more, a vase lifted off the ground, one of the few items still intact in the room. "I'll tell you everything. Just… it's a long story."

Raven's eyes returned to violet and the vase lowered itself gently to the ground. She waited quietly as Rune brought his legs around to be properly sitting. He couldn't meet Raven's eyes as he began telling the story to the floor. "My name was Finn Tylers before the world ended" he told her, "I was seventeen, resident of Gotham City. I wasn't exactly a resident of the nicest suburbs I'll admit but there were those who had it worse than us. There was a girl" he said, his voice quieting a fraction. Raven looked up at that, it wasn't jealousy she felt but somehow she had assumed she was the only girl that was or had been part of Rune's life. It stung a small bit to hear she wasn't. "Her name was Rose" Rune kept going, oblivious. "We were together enjoying a sunset on the banks of the Gotham River when the sky turned red, I remember the roar of it approaching, and the wind whipping past me. When the dust settled down, Rose was petrified" Rune winced. "Turned to stone. Everyone was, but not me, I still haven't found out why but I just wasn't. One second and I was walking around a destroyed Gotham, and I mean _destroyed. _Buildings were falling, blackened, skyscrapers of glass stood shattered, I thought it was Hell." Rune's voice darkened further. "Then as the world was changing back, something pulled me down and I found out what Hell really was. I was surrounded by fire, trapped when something trapped me, pinned me to a table of rock. Then it opened four red eyes."

Raven took in a breath. Rune hadn't been lying, she knew those eyes, she would remember them until the day she died.

"It called itself Trigon" Rune continued, "and it started to carve me, my skin. I'd scream and cry and beg for mercy but it never made no difference, my body was immobilised and the pain amused him. He started at fingertips, the small ones," Rune wiggled his fingers, indicating the delicate henna-style runes, "then up my wrists, arms and lastly my back." Raven remembered, Rune wouldn't have known it but the last rune Trigon inflicted on him was the Mark of Scath; Trigon had signed him like he was a painting. Her fists clenched in anger at the thought, _bastard. _"And I was home, back to Gotham. They said I just fell into the middle of the street, landed on a car. I should've died they said. But I still didn't."

"How long were you gone?" Raven asked.

"Seven months."

"It must've been hard coming back into normal life."

Rune shook his head. "Actually we were kind of used to people just dropping off the grid, cops weren't a common sight in districts like ours. But mine was harder. I had Rose back, she waited for me." Rune gave small smile but his voice was far from happy, very close to the opposite. "I was going straight, it was time to make the most of my second chance… then the runes started waking up."

Raven remembered the images and had a horrible feeling she knew where this story was going.

"It was just a few at first, I'd wake up after a dream and one would be glowing, I just ignored it, went back to sleep. The next day though, things got worse, runes were coming alive by themselves, I had no idea how to control them, I couldn't control them. Rose knew something was wrong, she could always just tell with me. I told to stay away, I told her to run…" Rune voice cracked, the guilt lacing it becoming too heavy. Raven again remembered, the figure running towards him as he pointed a hand towards her; Rune had tried to stop Rose from coming near him. Then there was the flash of light and the scream, the horrible scream. "I killed her" Rune finally managed. "The runes were out of control and she got too close and I killed her, right there on the street."

"I'm sorry" Raven told him, feeling her powers subside under her efforts to keep them controlled, she no longer possessed a threat to anyone, unintentionally at least. "What happened next?"

"I went on the run" Rune told her, "I couldn't stay at Gotham, everyone knew me as a killer. Rose's brothers, they ran the local gang, these guys were real killers. They had a bounty on me, police had a warrant out for me, I had to get out. So I took the first train out of Gotham, became a drifter, moving from place to place learning what my runes could do. Anything terrible happened I would leave again, same drill; pack everything in a bag, catch whatever I can that'll get me away and start over. Then I came here and you guys found me. Destroying the car was an accident, a new rune."

"Finn" Raven said softly, reaching out.

"No" Rune told her, "Finn Tylers died when the world ended. Darkside was the one who came out the other side."

Raven nodded, seemingly out of questions. She looked around at the destruction around them, she was going to have to do _a lot _of cleaning to get this place back together. "Okay" she said quietly, looking away. Rune got back to his feet. "Do me a favour?" He asked. "As a friend?"

Raven nodded.

"Don't tell the others, I've spent so long running from my past, what I did, I don't want to have to revisit that ever again."

Raven nodded and he left, heading back for his room picking up his towel on the way out. Raven felt her powers reaching a point of calm she hadn't felt in a long time; after everything since Rune had arrived, their whirlwind fits of passion, the depths of his past and the memories that haunted him that she had relived, she felt like all her emotions had burnt out, like light bulbs that had exploded after burning too brightly until they burst. Raven looked around once more, then grabbed the closest page lying on the ground beside her. It was time to rebuild.


	12. Friends

The team was relieved to see Raven return to her usual self. True, it wasn't if she was bouncing around the walls like Starfire but she was still at least in the same room as everyone, which was a marked improvement. Rune and Raven had patched up whatever had been rocky with them and became good friends at last, everyone could see the obvious tension between them had deflated like a popped balloon. Robin and Starfire were on the up and up, Robin had taken her ice skating on a rare date which had both hilarious and unfortunate results for the Tamaranean who had never tried the practice before and so ended the night with a very sore and bruised rear end. She spent the rest of the night soothing what she described as "grievous injuries to the posterior". Everyone had their own little days for cute date days, Cyborg and Robin went to a shooting range, Robin grinned as he punctured the targets perfectly for maximum points but his mouth fell open in shock as Cyborg destroyed all three with one shot having turned his arm into what could only could be called a sonic bazooka. Raven and Cyborg had discovered the fun of playing whack-a-mole with Beast Boy as the mole. Beast Boy tried to turn the fear on Robin by challenging him to a scary movie marathon, to which Raven gracefully uninvited herself. A pool party to which Rune and Raven had declined ended up with Beast Boy turning into an elephant and blasting them both until they were drenched, "bring the pool to you guys seeing as you wouldn't come to the pool" he had said. Raven's threat of merciless punishment and retaliation caught unintentionally in her throat as Rune peeled of his dripping shirt casually before chasing after Beast Boy. "Boys" she muttered, turning around to retreat to her room and a clean change of clothes. Raven wasn't really what anyone would call the pool party type, instead she took Rune to a place she hadn't shared with anyone, her herbal tea shop. The basement doubled as both the storeroom and a stage for dreary poetry reading. Raven had never invited any of the Titans here for fear of how they might think of her. So this night Raven took Rune downstairs and avoided the table for just one person that she had always sat at, taking a new one with a cushion for Rune. He looked confused until taking her lead and sitting cross legged. Raven raised two fingers to the woman at the counter and quickly, two cups of steaming herbal tea were brought to her. "Herbal tea?" Asked Rune.

"Yeah why, did you want one?" Raven asked, pulling both cups to her.

Rune stared at her for a moment, unsure of what to say.

"I'm joking" she added, pushing one back to him.

Rune was quiet for a moment before an embarrassed smile cracked his features, Raven had just played him. She smiled thinly to herself under the cowl as a small amount of colour dusted her cheeks. Rune looked around at the clientele of the store, many were clad in shrunken black unflattering leather with make-up and excessive amounts piercings decorating glum expressions. One approached her, "you're Raven aren't you?" He said in a completely dread drone. "One of the Titans? Fighting to save the world too busy killing itself to thank you, I don't know why you bother, this world is a snake gorging itself on its own tail, I hate life, I can't wait until we all burn."

"I can see how you fit in here" Rune remarked.

"I'm here for the Gothic culture" Raven told him, "not the emo."

"There's a difference?" Rune asked.

Raven rolled her eyes, irritated by Rune's ignorance. "Yes, emos are a pathetic waste of talent that convince themselves that the world is not worth saving so that they don't have to try and make a difference." She pointed after the person who had spoken to her. "That was emo…" as she looked for an example to provide contrary evidence to the two cultures being identical, she heard a poem being read.

_What have you wrought? A haze of betrayal as sentiments shudder. Once we shared innocence, wide-eyed and untainted, but your heart soured. A clouded pool of memories; pain follows memories, follows love, love left to die in a torrent of tears. But I remember you._

"And that" Raven told Rune, "is Gothic."

"I still don't quite see the difference" Rune replied.

"Which means you aren't Gothic" Raven told him. Rune paused awkwardly, once again unsure of what to say knowing that Raven had brought him somewhere that she'd taken no one else. "Don't worry" she said, raising her cup to her lips and taking a small swallow. "I still like you though."

Rune relaxed with a reassured smile and took a sip of his own, almost choking on it. "Jesus, they brew it strong down here."

"Yeah" agreed Raven taking another sip, totally unfazed, "it's just really expensive so I like to make mine last."

Raven bought herself another bag on the way out as they left the store. Winter had never been a noteworthy problem for Jump City but this year it had been particularly cold, the wind as they left the store made Rune shiver as Raven pulled her cloak closer into her. Rune noticed the motion and pulled off his coat, offering it her. "I don't need it" she told him, shaking her head in refusal of the gesture.

"I know" Rune replied simply, "but it's cold and you'll be better with it."

"You're cold too" she argued.

He shrugged, the coat still hanging in his outstretched hands. "The thought alone will warm me enough." Raven shivered again and relented, Rune whipped the coat around and draped it over her shoulders. Though she wouldn't admit it, the weight of the coat made her feel more comfortable nearly instantly, before she realised Rune's hands were still on either side of the collar, passing her face and lightly resting on her shoulders. Rune's eyes met hers evenly fro the arm's length away and she found herself mesmerised in them, unable to tear herself away. A familiar heat filled her cheeks and Raven knew it had nothing to do with the clothes she wore. Rune held her a moment more before dropping his hands, breaking the connection- and the moment- between them. Raven looked away, pretending to check the bottom of her shoe before Rune ventured to break the awkward silence filled by submerged thoughts. "We should get home" he said.

"Then let's go" she replied, the two of them walking down the street without saying another word.

* * *

_Fucking idiot _Rune cursed the stupid fucking face in the mirror looking back at him. He hadn't meant to do anything to trigger any sort of romantic feeling with Raven and yet he saw something stir in her eyes that he felt stirring in himself. _Why do you have to kick up drama? Why can't you just make this easy and let her go? Instead you go and do some dumb shit like playing around as Prince fucking Charming. _Rune flinched as in his anger he dragged his hand across a little quicker, causing the blade to bite into his neck. "Shit" he muttered as the white shaving cream began to stain red. Feeling his power wake, he looked at the red rune on his wrist as power flowed up his arm to seal the hole in his neck, his skin feeling blisteringly hot and incredibly itchy as it did so. He stroked the now smooth spot of skin, looking appreciative. He dried his face off with a towel and looked at his tired reflection, it had been a long day of trying not to fall for Raven. _We're friends _he told himself for the hundredth time, but it wasn't as if his mind would ever listen, being as stubborn as he was. He walked back into his room and stretched out to his limits, twisting and feeling his vertebra click down his spine, another degree of relief being achieved with each click. He hoped Robin would have some sort of mission for them soon, they had made absolutely no progress on either Red X or Slade and knowing that this power was out there… Rune was a constant reminder to himself that power wasn't always a blessing. He thought of Raven, he always thought of Raven. He sat on the edge of his bed, the moon lit up his room too brightly to sleep, and wondered if she thought of him. Because although he was truly sincere in his efforts not to fall for Raven, he was well aware that it was only making him fall for her more.

* * *

Raven had been quiet for nearly the rest of the entire evening, barely paying attention to anyone. Beast Boy had tried to prank her by sneaking behind her as a mosquito before shifting into a lion and roaring, to which she hadn't even flinched, such was her detachment. She had taken one spoonful of her dinner before declaring she was full and leaving. Rune shrugged to Starfire as she quizzed him with her eyes, he couldn't taste anything off with her cooking. At least he thought that was why she was quizzing him, he couldn't believe that Starfire would be the one to pick up on the awkward romantic miscommunications between himself and Raven, but then stranger things did frequently happen to this group of heroes. Rune avoided meeting her gaze for the rest of dinner as he put his head down and ate. Raven retreated to her room again and tried to lose herself in books but found she couldn't after reading the same line three times and still not taking in any information from the letters on the page. Forcing herself to bed, Raven still found herself unable to do the simple things, like sleep. She tossed and turned, adjusted her legs and pulled up or pushed back the sheets but nothing seemed to do the trick. Stranded without anything else, Raven found herself thinking of Rune, his body, the hardened muscles under his shirt and the way the water had glistened off his skin when he had removed it. Her breath caught in her chest as her hand drifted down between her legs. Raven's eyes snapped open as her fingertips brushed her womanhood, what was she doing? This was Rune, a guy she had absolutely zero romantic feelings for, not even a wish. _I was only thinking of his body _she reasoned, _pure physical thoughts, just for relief, Beast Boy probably does it loads. _She then wondered why she had to justify her own actions in her mind, _it's my body, I don't need anyone's permission, I can do what I want. It doesn't mean anything._

_Keep telling yourself that _Passion whispered in reply but Raven had already fallen back under her power, her fingers stroking up and down, her first touch had not only been surprising by the fact she had touched herself, but also how wet she was. Her fingers made idle circles around her clitoris, brushing it to fire off spasms of sensation then again as soon as it had barely subsided. She could feel her nipples pushing against the fabric of her sleeping gown. She imagined his stomach muscles rippling as she lay beneath him, her fingers digging into his skin, willing him to go faster. He kissed her neck the way he had done so before, one of his hands creeping up to massage her aching breast, teasing and twisting at the aching bud of her nipple. She moaned involuntarily, dropping her fingers lower, entering herself. Her breath began to come only only in moans and gasps, as she sped up, as in her mind Rune sped up, she imagined the warmth of his skin against hers, the scent of his hair that fell down around his face, his groans as his muscles tightened, as he drove deeper and called out her name. Raven gave out a moan that almost escalated to a scream as she climaxed, her legs driving down into the bed to lift her hips up as the waves reverberated through her body. Her hand clamped over her mouth as her mind returned to her, forcing herself to take breaths through her nose. Thankfully, no one came to investigate the sound. Raven let out a sigh of relief, before slipping off her useless underpants and dropping them in her laundry basket before climbing back into bed, letting her dreams of Rune take her away into a sweet slumber.

* * *

Robin kissed Starfire goodnight sweetly as she left the room, heading for bed and the promise of sleep. He wasn't far from it himself, he could feel the bags under his eyes growing heavier behind the mask. Running a grid search of the Jump City power grid for any anomalies, the screen told him flatly in bold capital red letters that nothing was irregular. _Where are you hiding Slade? _He thought, no matter how bright Starfire lit him up inside, there would always be that masked demon inhabiting a corner of darkness inside him, the battle between the shadows and his soul had been fraught, more than once nearly swallowing Robin and his team but there had ever been victory. Robin thought back to his mentor, often consumed by the mental demons of what the worst of what Gotham had to offer were up to. Robin had never understood that feeling before striking out alone, now, he could only wonder how his mentor kept up the calm and composed persona of the other half of his double life, living in the mask allowed Robin to vent frequently, something he certainly could not do in a tuxedo as a billionaire's protégé. Robin checked his other searches, meteorological, gas systems, the subway system, anything to give him a clue about Slade. But there was nothing. Robin shook his head and ended the session, there was always tomorrow. And if they did not find Slade, he would find them waiting. He would find them ready. Robin stood from his seat and stretched, the muscles in his back particularly appreciate, and then began to walk for the exit. That's when the picture of Red X appeared on the screen, lighting the room up. "I hear you've been looking for me."

* * *

In another area of the city, in a building shielded from satellite surveillance, running off private generators and covered in surveillance systems, a megalomaniac sat. Not that he'd ever classify himself as such, it would be incorrect. There was no one like him. He consulted all the screens flashing at him in the blink of one eye, processing and organising the information in his head. Knowledge was power, and if his plan was to succeed, he would need to be very powerful, to be empowered even further. He looked down at his hand as his fingers unfurled and clenched back in again like the fall of a wave. To feel the power he had wielded before, to feel it _trebled, _the thought itself was almost too much to bear. An alert snapped him back to the present, his communication system was being hacked. _What!? _A voice in Slade's mind thundered. _Who!? _His security far outmatched the hacking capabilities of Cyborg, in the absurdly rare chance that they would even manage to somehow locate his system, which he could rehide among spam and junk coding in seconds. But this wasn't the Titans. Slade could only watch uselessly and clench his fist tighter as his security parted like a veil before a sword. An image of Red X appeared on his screen. "I hear you've been looking for me."

* * *

"Don't bother replying" Red X told the camera. "This communication is strictly one way, I can't hear you, see you or have this communication traced by you, so you might want to stop your threats and listen up. I have this little nest egg" he said, tossing up the gem tantalisingly to the camera, "and I'm looking to sell. I've come to the decision that your hands are my best choice to have the gem residing in; both for my health and finances. If you don't want it, I know another party who does, and you know exactly who I'm talking about, who would want this quite a bit. Tomorrow night, Jump City docks, Pier 41. I believe you know the place." He killed the transmission with a chuckle. He had just played both Jump City's finest heroes and its worst villain. He was bringing the unstoppable force straight towards the immovable object, all because he could. They didn't know but he was already wealthy beyond measure, he wasn't stealing for his finances, it was solely for the thrill. In Titans Tower, Robin growled and went back to the console to start searching for Red X. In his complex Slade slammed a fist down into the armrest of the seat, warping the metal. And in a penthouse suite of the most expensive hotel in Jump City, Red X put up his feet and laughed. There was a battle brewing for Jump City; Red X had never particularly liked the place and now he was going to soak the wood in gasoline before someone threw the match.


	13. Double Dealt

The wide doors of the warehouse on Pier 41 swung wide open as Cyborg grunted, pushing hard. The door stopped with a clatter and the six silhouettes walked in, Robin leading them. They all looked around, leering at the place. It was at this warehouse Slade had sent his threat about the chronoton detonator, all in his bid to recruit Robin as his apprentice. Robin's scowl deepened as he remembered the rage that flowed through him fighting off Slade's robots.

The team had arisen early in the morning to see Robin hard at work at his computer, fixated on the screen. He neglected to sleep, solely focussed on Slade, Red X and the Ascent Trio. There had to be some connection to it all, he just didn't know how. He could feel the team's concern for him, fearing his obsession with Slade but they simply didn't understand, whatever was Slade was planning was nothing short of cataclysmic, catching Slade and saving the world were one and the same in this situation, they only saw him trying to achieve the former. He had filled them in on Red X's deal and they had all reacted differently. Cyborg had immediately exploded asking how Robin could go through with such a deal, Starfire had simply closed her eyes in sad understanding and Beast Boy had to poke Robin a few times to check if he was real, just for old time's sake. Only Raven and Rune stayed quiet, they had seemed to share some sort of bond that kept their behaviours in sync. "I have to" Robin replied, answering Cyborg first, "Red X made it perfectly clear that he's willing to offer it to Slade if we say no, we can't let that happen." Robin's face grew red at this point as Beast Boy changed into a mosquito checking to see if the Robin standing before them was human. It took a tremendous amount of self control not to slap that mosquito into slime but Robin made do by grabbing its wing and throwing it away, followed by a yell as Beast Boy slapped into the wall.

"What does Red X want in return?" Rune asked.

"He didn't say" Robin replied, his expression grim. "Which makes me think whatever he wants, it isn't money."

"Xenothium?" Cyborg asked, "Maybe he's trying to power up his suit again?"

"I doubt it" Robin replied, "he could his hands on xenothium easier than we could. And it's my suit" he added harshly. "Red X has always been motivated by his biggest priority; taking care of himself. Maybe he just knows that the Ascent Trio in Slade's hands would be a source of trouble even he couldn't escape."

"With his arrogance?" Raven asked with the smallest hint of a scoff. "Red X would die before the thought of being vincible crosses his mind."

"Why Pier 41?" Beast Boy asked, picking himself up off the floor and shaking away the birds floating around his head.

"He's just trying to intimidate us" Starfire said in a growing voice.

"Or make use of the escape routes nearby" Cyborg added, bringing back the memories of the speedboat chase in the sewers below.

"He shall fail!" Starfire declared loudly.

"Easy" Robin soothed, his hands raised. "This is a trade, not a fight. We don't want to scare off Red X before we have the gem. After we have our hands on the gem though," his raised hands turned back towards his body as he closed them. "We take him down, he's involved in this."

"And even if isn't, he's still a criminal" Cyborg said with a nod of support towards Robin. The leader felt a surprisingly gratifying amount of reassurance from the gesture.

"Pack for a fight" he told his team. "Hope for a negotiation. We move tonight."

Being told they were going for a mission later was a new and odd experience for Rune. Everything they had done previously was simply the alarm going off and the titans responding immediately, no waiting, no hesitation, get to this point as fast as you can to fight. He wasn't the only one in a state of discomfort it seemed. Cyborg still played games with Beast Boy but Rune could see him checking his power levels between every round, as if his batteries were on the verge of having a terrible malfunction. Raven went to meditate which, in all honesty, wasn't that different but Rune knew her better, he could see the grim determination in her stride, she had more of a purpose to strive towards with her rituals than fulfil the usual routine to keep her powers in check. Starfire and Robin left, him wanting to prepare and her concerned over his fatigue. Rune found himself standing in the middle, looking between the muted competition of Cyborg and Beast Boy and the three other Titans leaving, him stranded in the middle, unsure of where he fit. "Fuck it" he muttered under his breath, leaving after the rest of the group, convincing himself there was something in his room that he could do to occupy himself and waste away the hours. He still had Raven's book listing all the runes, he had already read it cover to cover twice, and had memorised the page numbers where he could find the patterns that adorned his body, but then there was no harm in doing it again he figured.

* * *

"Robin!" Starfire called out, flying after her boyfriend. "Robin, wait!"

"I'm busy" Robin replied, his back still moving away from her. "We'll talk later."

Starfire grabbed his arm. "No we will not!" Robin tried to pull away but she held steadfast with her Tamaranean strength. "You are again slipping again into your obsessions, please do not succumb to them."

"I have to" Robin argued, "Slade was always ruthless and I promised I wouldn't rest until I brought him down, a promise I intend to keep. I created Red X, he's my responsibility to stop, can't you see that? This could all spiral out of control in one day and if I give anything less than one hundred percent to stopping and someone gets hurt, I'll blame myself."

"And what about me?" Starfire asked. "Us? I don't want you to give a hundred percent to me, I know you can't but if you neglect me and I get hurt a different way, will you still blame yourself then?"

"Feelings are easier to fix than bodies" Robin said, then immediately wished he hadn't.

Starfire visibly flinched and her eyes welled with tears, but she did not cry. "That is an easy thing to say for a boy who was taught not to feel" she said. "But I understand. I understand I can't come before your duty but I also understand I don't deserve to be completely neglected like a toy on a shelf that you only play with when you feel like it. I understand you are our leader but I also understand you are my friend who is a boy who I share romantic feelings with. Or at least you were."

"Starfire" Robin said, he grabbed her and tried to look in her eyes but she turned her face away.

"I understand I have committed many wrongs in my life" she said quietly, "but I also understand I deserve better than you." And with that she shook herself free of his grip, turned and walked away, trying not to break down in front of him. Her room would be the place for that. Robin wanted to go after her, to call her name, to fall on his knees and beg her forgiveness but he did not. He did none of these things. Instead Robin turned, took a breath, and headed off to his room, where further research beckoned, instead of the embrace of Starfire's arms. The unenthusiastic day passed slower than everyone would have liked, but eventually Robin's voice sounded through everyone's communicators as the sun dipped lower. "Everyone assemble in the lounge in five."

They had responded, Cyborg's circuits whirring as he did a final check of his weapon systems reaching the room.

"We get the gem first" Robin told them. "Whoever has it takes it back to Titans Tower immediately with two others as escort. The remaining three go after Red X, and nothing gets in their way. Are we clear?"

Five silent faces looked back at him.

"Then let's move out" Robin ordered. It took them only a matter of minutes to the docks, Robin leading the way on the R-Cycle doing more death defying stunts than was usual even for him. He pulled up the bike with a squeal from the wheels and pulled off his helmet, the memories already returning to him just from being outside the building. The Titans all joined him, Rune was always welcome to a seat in the T-Car but tonight Raven had taken him, he wondered if his suspicions about them were correct, but then again he'd probably find out later. Was this what it was like for everyone else looking at him and Starfire? _Starfire. _He winced internally just thinking her name. Were they still even together after what he had said? He knew he had been careless with her but at the same time, he still meant what he had said, both Slade and Red X needed to be taken down. He had told Starfire he could be more than a hero, but was that extra spot being filled by his desire for vengeance? _It's not vengeance _he told himself, _it's justice. The fact that both of them have embarrassed you has nothing to do with this. _Was he only saying this was personal when it suited him? Because when the Titans tried to pull him away from the search, he told them he couldn't because of his personal connections but if they voiced concerns over the amount of time he was spending hunting them, he immediately distanced himself from them and turned right around, saying it was impersonal, his business as a hero. How could he lie to his team if he didn't even know the truth with himself anymore? Robin felt the seeds of a headache blossoming at his temples, this wasn't the time to let himself be distracted, he needed to bring his A-game tonight. He looked at Raven and felt a shade of envy at the peace she could find with her meditations. Of course, being so extensively trained in martial arts he was no stranger to the art but could never find the peace that she could. He could never empty his mind, bursting with a hundred other things that his time would be better spent doing. If he kept going, his foot would develop an itch that couldn't be ignored, he could hear a buzzing in his ear, he was not made to be still, he had to attack the next task. Robin took a deep breath and felt the bo staff retracted at his back, making sure it was in place. He walked up to the door and saw a heavy padlock conjoining the two doors. "Cyborg" he called. "Break it open." The Titan had complied and the team walked into the darkened warehouse, shadows lay on the ground and the walls through the windows in the roof. "Red X?" He called out. The only reply was the flapping of wings as he disturbed a flock of birds roosting in the rafters. "Spread out" he ordered, "look around. Keep in contact" he added, remembering Raven.

Raven heard the softer tone in his voice and her pride pricked. She didn't want pity for what had happened to her with Slade, she wanted it gone and forgotten. He had been good, she had been caught off-guard, that was all there was to it. _Don't you start _she growled in her head where Passion was opening her mouth, there was nothing between her and Rune, nothing. She rounded a corner and was met with the green glow of Starfire. Both of them shook their heads indicating the had found nothing, then took different directions. Cyborg was scanning the floor for any hidden entrances not listed in the blueprints as Rune walked up to him. As he was about to ask if he had found anything, Rune's eyes were caught by shadow briefly cast onto the floor but by the time he had whipped around, the rooftop window was clear. Robin was stalking the walls but saw the motion. "The roof?" He asked. Rune nodded, but he had a sick feeling the shadow had not been of Red X.

Beast Boy stared up at all the shelves stacked with dozens of crates. "What's in all these?" He asked, pointing with a thumb.

"Nothing much" Cyborg said, "this place got turned into a storage warehouse for old computer parts, just a bottomless pit to throw their trash into and not worry about it for the next few years, every major company has places like this, it helps them avoid costly plans to dispose of the pieces, just sweep it under the rug in a place nobody knows about."

"Almost no one" came Red X's voice. The Titans spun around as one of the crates near the top fell apart, Red X sitting cozily on a few luxurious pillows inside, a magazine in his hands. He tossed it over his head and stood up, stretching like a cat. "About time you got here, was thinking I had gone through all this trouble for nothing."

"We came" Robin growled. "Where's the gem?"

"Relax bird boy, I've got it here." Sure enough, Red X reached down and produced the enormous gem, a mixture of blood and ruby red. "It's all yours."

"What's the catch?"

"No catch" Red X told him, holding his hands up in a gesture of peace. They lowered slightly. "You just need to take it."

Robin's hand dropped to his belt and produced three flashbang discs.

"Not from me" Red X chuckled. He tossed the gem up, forcing Robin to take three running strides and dive to catch it. As he held his hands out, a silhouette flew over him and wrapped itself around the gem, rolling away. "From him."

Robin stared as the silhouette turned, revealing an orange half of his face. "Slade? You're working with Red X?"

"No more I suspect, than Red X is working with you" Slade replied with a drawl, the gem nestled in his arm.

"Bang on skipper" Red X called from his perch, "I'll leave you to your fun." He noticed Starfire's green eyes blazing at him out of the darkness. "Stay cute, sweetie" he told her, fading out of focus before disappearing all together. The next thing they heard was a tapping sound like rain.

"He's on the roof!" Cyborg shouted.

"Get after him!" Robin yelled back, pulling out his staff and extending it to full length. "I'll take care of Slade."

"Like you took care of me last time?" Slade mocked. Robin roared and charged as Cyborg ascended to the roof courtesy of Starfire, flanked by Beast Boy. Robin, Raven and Rune were left surrounding Slade. "It is somewhat humorous that the Titans left to face me are all of the Titans I've fought one-on-one and completely humiliated. I should almost be embarrassed how little you think of me to meet with such… pathetic excuses for heroes."

Robin roared and chased after Slade again, Raven created a block of dark energy that Robin used to vault himself up into the air. Slade took a step back as Robin slammed down the staff into space he had just vacated, splintering the concrete. Raven raised herself into the air, her cloak billowing as she opened white unblinking eyes fixated on Slade. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" The crates occupying the shelves shook as they came free, coated black. Raven pointed and they hailed down upon Slade, forcing him to turn heel and run from the barrage, dodging some, destroying others. _My turn _Rune thought as Slade smashed through the last crate with a crazed fist. Rune jumped in the air and came down slamming both fists into the ground. An orange light shot down his shoulders and through the ground, causing it to explode upwards all around Slade. He was strong enough to keep his feet but the dust was still enough to blind him. Robin threw a perfectly aimed bird-a-rang and grinned as the sound of it hitting the gem echoed through the warehouse, followed by Slade's shout of anger. Raven latched on and pulled it to her, clutching it in both her hands.

"Raven! Get it out of here!" Robin ordered.

Raven turned and flew away but a cable flew out and wrapped her legs. Raven struggled but the strength behind it was immense; she was being dragged back. "Robin!" She cried, tossing it away before Slade swung her into the ground.

Robin caught it and ran but had to dive to avoid being crushed by a green rhino that was suddenly slammed through the ceiling. _Red X is putting up a fight _Robin thought. He got back up to see Slade chasing after him. "Help us" he told the rhino, "delay him." The rhino blinked in understanding and changed into a tiger, roaring at Slade. Slade didn't slow, instead jumping and planting a foot in Beast Boy's face using him to extend his jump. Robin found himself draped in shadow as he looked up and saw Slade rapidly filling his vision. Robin twisted and threw the gem back to Beast Boy who caught it quite literally with the grip of an octopus. Slade planted two boots in Robin's chest and flipped backwards, sending Robin into the ground heavily, gasping for breath whilst Slade went after Beast Boy who shifted into a monkey. Slade snatched at the gem but Beast Boy tossed it quickly to one hand before throwing it backwards to his tail, flicking it back off to Rune before being levelled by a punch to the face. Robin got back up to see Slade advancing menacingly on Rune when he heard a scream from above; it was Starfire. Robin looked back to Rune who was shrinking back, his team mates still getting back up from the beatings Slade had dished out on them. _Fuck! _Robin thought, then realising he didn't have the time to think curse words, _I'm sorry my friend. _Raising the grappling gun, Robin flew through the hole in the ceiling after Starfire.

Rune looked up as Robin left him, and in that moment of hesitation Slade had wrapped his fingers around the teen's throat. Slade wrenched the gem from his grip as he slammed Rune against a shelf. "I said you had something I want" Slade told him calmly. Then without warning, bashed the gem into Rune's face. "Give it to me!" He roared, striking Rune again. "I want what you stole! Give it to me!"

Rune wouldn't have replied even if he could have, his mind was wildly screaming with questions about what Slade wanted. Slade eventually stopped, pressing the gem hard into Rune's face. Rune grunted as he felt more blood being pushed out of his cuts before Slade suddenly flew sideways and out of sight; Raven having worked herself free of Slade's rope and slamming him with a blast of energy. She used another to push over the shelves, toppling them like dominoes towards Slade. Slade looked up from the crater he had gouged through the ground as the shelves toppled towards him, crates falling over and bursting, spilling computer parts and contributing to the orchestra symphony of destruction. He got up and scrambled for the gem, before the shelves slammed into the ground with a final eruption of dust. The three Titans got back to their feet, breathing heavily. Rune rubbed a sleeve over his bloody face before the sound of Robin landing made made him turn around. His throat filled with all the questions he wanted to shout at Robin, where he had gone, why he had left Rune to get the shit kicked out of him by Slade when he stopped. Starfire was limp in Robin's arms, blood was running down her face.

"What the hell happened?" He asked.

"I hacked his frequency" Cyborg said lamely, "prevented Red X from pulling a disappearing act on us again forcing him to turn and fight." He nodded at Starfire, "and he fought damn hard."

"We need to get her back to the tower" Robin said, turning away, her blood staining his green gloves. "What about Slade and the gem?"

Rune looked back to the fallen stack of shelves. "I'll take her back to the tower" Cyborg offered Robin, "let you lead things here."

"No" Robin declined, "I'll take her myself, can you lead?"

Cyborg nodded, "we'll back in a while after you, T-Car's all yours."

"Thanks" Robin said, then left, whispering small reassurances to her unconscious form slumped in his arms. He delicately laid her in the back seat then took off in the T-Car.

Cyborg turned back to the group of silent and glum faces. "Ok team, this is simple. We're working recovery of a dangerous object."

"How is the gem dangerous?" Beast Boy asked.

"I was talking about Slade" Cyborg replied.

"Raven buried him" Rune said, waving them over to the last of the shelves, decrepit pieces of computers and hard drives crunching under their feet. He knelt down to the pile and released a pulse from a rune pressed into the ground. "If we find him under all this" he told Cyborg, "we won't find him breathing."

Cyborg nodded, bracing himself against the nearest shelf. "Then let's start digging", he grunted and pressed his legs into the ground, pushing the first shelf off the pile. Without Starfire's increased strength and lasers, it took the team the best part of an hour to dig to a disappointment. As Raven and Beast Boy's ox removed the final place, they found a human sized pocket in the rubble. What made them all grimace though, was the hole that had been cut through into the sewer below. Slade had escaped, and he had the second gem. Cyborg pressed a hand to his head. "Robin" he reported, "he got away." The team then left the warehouse with a trudge, very aware that this was the second time Slade had trumped them here, and this was adding to an ever-lengthening list of their failures to stop him.


	14. There's Something About Raven

Starfire groaned as she reached up to touch her head in an effort to ease the throbbing. "Looks who's awake" a male voice commented.

Starfire opened her eyes and waited for her vision to clear as Rune came into focus. "What happened?" She asked.

"Fractured skull" Rune told her as he removed the needle from her arm. "Few other fractures, bumps and bruises of all description. Lucky you Tamaraneans heal fast."

"It is a most fortunate trait" Starfire agreed, scrunching her eyes as she tried to close out the pain.

"Stay in bed until lunch" Rune told her, "by then I think you'll be back to one hundred percent." He chuckled, "usually you're the one playing nursemaid to me."

Starfire smiled, "I am most grateful for your care of me, I am lucky to have someone so skilled."

"You are" Rune agreed, "but it's not me you should be thanking, the Boy Wonder was the one who spent all night working on you."

"Robin?" Starfire asked.

Rune nodded. "I'm just here to check on your fluids. Getting you back to the tower, cleaning your injuries and patching you up; that was all him. He only got to sleep an hour ago, and Cyborg had to nearly fight him to get him to leave your side."

"Robin" Starfire repeated, only to herself, and quieter. What was she to think of him now? In the days following Tokyo, he had been at her side ever-presently, treated her like the princess she was and never hid a thing from her. Then Slade had crept back into his mind with a raid there or an attack here and she had fought to keep him from slipping back into the shadows of his former self. They had been a roller coaster of confusion and pushed to the brink, he had thrown what people of Earth would call "a curveball" into her way of thinking. She remembered Red X taunting her about Robin, telling her she was too good for him, telling her how the thief would treat her to nothing less than the best and that Robin would toss her aside and use another girl, he'd done it before. The last jibe had made her stop in both anger and hesitation and Red X had twisted and slammed a heel into her temple, her vision exploded in red stars. She knew he was lithe as a fighter, him holding his own against Robin more than spoke to his credit but she had never considered him lethal before now. She shivered a little as she wondered how many people Red X had killed behind the mask and how Robin must have felt thinking the same question. How he must have felt knowing that her blood was spilt by someone behind his mask, she winced again at her head and Rune handed her two pills with a small glass of water. "Take it" he ordered, and stood watching her with his arms crossed.

Starfire looked at him curiously. "Are you going to maintain watch until I have consumed the medication?"

Rune shrugged. "Robin's orders" he told her, then as she swallowed, he left the room. Starfire watched him go, Robin flooding her mind again before she winced and laid back against the pillows, wishing her blessedly lucky Tamaranean biology was just a tad luckier.

* * *

Rune left and began to walk down to the lounge for an early breakfast when a voice calling his name made him turn. "Rune wait up!" Beast Boy called.

Rune concealed his disappointment that it wasn't Raven calling his name and put on a smile. "What's up?"

"It's Raven" Beast Boy said, piquing Rune's interest. "She's not been herself lately."

"That would insinuate you know who she actually is" Rune replied, surprising himself with the hostility of his reply, it had almost come out jealous. "What do you mean?"

"She's been all over the show" Beast Boy said, displaying a softer side; Rune had half expected him to use his arms to make himself massive but Beast Boy was still, his face serious. "One minute she's curious, then she's blushing at everything, then she's terrified, then she's in her room for way longer than normal, even for her."

"What's she like now?" Rune asked curiously, the emotions he realised almost had mimicked his own cycles, was it possible she felt the confusion for him as he did about her? No one had picked up on them evidently, he wondered whether Raven had attracted everyone's attentions or just Beast Boy's. "Confused" Beast Boy replied, "or at least that's what I think, I always used to be able to tell but now… she's different."

"Have you tried telling her?" Rune asked.

"What?! Are you crazy!?" Beast Boy exclaimed, this time his arms flapped. _Delayed reaction _Rune thought. "She wouldn't listen to me, I'm the comic relief guy."

"Which is exactly why you being serious might be more effective" Rune replied carefully. He didn't want to completely leave himself out of this, but nor did he want to betray any excessive affection for Raven. The Titans may be superheroes but they were still teenagers and as such, living among them could sometimes feel like a social minefield. "What would be so wrong with her changing anyhow?"

"Because she was perfect before" Beast Boy told him.

_Who are you to judge? _Rune wanted to challenge, something about Beast Boy's voice was rubbing him the wrong way. "So why are you telling me this?" He asked instead.

"Because I was thinking maybe you could talk to her" Beast Boy said, "you guys like have a shared bit of background, she'll probably listen to you better. Raven wouldn't listen to me, she'd shy away from confrontation. And you know, because you're new…"

He trailed off and Rune suddenly clicked. Beast Boy wasn't afraid of Raven's reprisal, he was afraid of ruining their past. He and Raven had history but Rune did not, he had no reputation or happy memories to ruin with her. _He wants to offer me up as bait _Rune thought, _a shield for any negative consequences, a little sacrificial lamb. _He looked at Beast Boy again, was he hiding something more for Raven as well? Was every interaction he shared with planned, doctored and tailored in some grand plan of his to win Raven? _She's not a prize _Rune instantly thought in reply, nobody was a prize. He had loved Rose, he always had, and she had shown him that people weren't prizes, they were the competition, always requiring constant attention, practice, never won but you just had to stay winning for as long as possible. There was never an end, a 'prize' to be won; the girl you were fighting to keep by your side and in your heart was all the motivation you would need to keep trying. The moment you believe you had won and that was that, was the moment you took her for granted and was the moment you deserved to lose her. Rune had been an idiot, young and blinded, Rose had quickly brought him back down to Earth and he had been so grateful for the man she had made of him. _And then you killed her _one of the darker voices in his head told him. Rune quickly stamped it back down but Beast Boy noticed the change in his expression.

"Dude, you okay?" He asked.

Rune forced a smile and hoped it looked authentic. "Yeah I'm fine." Was getting closer to Raven risking her meeting the same fate as he had brought on Rose? He hadn't mentioned it to anyone but he had still found runes on his body that were not listed in Raven's book, runes nobody knew the potential of. He was still a weapon of an amount of destruction no one could guess. No matter how much he wished otherwise, he was still a danger to her, to his friends, to anyone he got close to. That was why he had become a drifter, after Rose died he had planned to settle somewhere new but after the runes activated again, Rune had known he couldn't settle, he had to stay on the move, to keep people safe. The world would've been better off without him, the least he could do was to try and minimise the burdens he put on it while he was still alive. "I'll talk to her" he told Beast Boy, who's face relaxed back into a relaxed expression.

"Thanks" Beast Boy said, giving him a slap on the shoulder. "You're a good pal, even if you provide no challenge at Mega Monkey 4."

Would Beast Boy still think that about Rune if he knew about the kiss he had shared with Raven, and the time they had kissed and it had turned into… something more? Rune resolved that it wouldn't happen, if Beast Boy liked Raven then who the hell was he to stand in the way of a relationship? She would find a better match in Beast Boy, Rune decided. He forced a grin to his friend, "excuse me, who won the last round you and I played?"

The two cajoled and made jibes at each other before the two were bursting with laughter, as friends. They played ten rounds of Mega Monkey 4, tying each other at five each. It had gone this way all morning, with one bettering the other before the loser challenged the other to raise of matches that the competition was best of. The pair ironically missed the breakfast they had intending to eat earlier in their challenge to win the best of what was now twenty one matches before Cyborg came in and promptly thrashed both of them, getting them to finally leave the sofa for a very late brunch, since Beast Boy refused to admit he had actually missed a meal. "Best of twenty three?" He asked after they had finished.

"I actually promised to help Cyborg with the T-Car" Rune replied. "Plus there's that… other thing you asked me to do."

Beast Boy nodded and then made the most unsubtle wink ever, Rune was just glad no one was in the room to see the bright neon light sign and air horns Beast Boy was practically blaring that he had a secret. "Yo, Rune!" Cyborg called from the communicator on Rune's belt. "I fixed up the last gap you found, you ain't gonna get in this time."

"I'm on my way down" Rune told Cyborg's face on the screen, "and careful, after Mega Monkey 4, I'm in a mood to disappoint you." He took the elevator down and spent a few minutes circling the car, just looking for a crevice he could exploit. Cyborg was too busy beaming to notice anything in particular. You're not getting in, and you can't hot-wire the car if there is nothing to make a spark from. He lifted a finger with a blue dot glowing on the top. "I now provide the electrical source for the ignition, no wires to cross, totally foolproof."

"Lucky I'm not a fool" Rune remarked with a grunt as he twisted and the door popped open. Cyborg's smug expression melted off his face and quickly reset into tears as Rune began ripping open sections and throwing them out of the car, working for a few minutes before the car roared into life, Rune giving it a few experimental taps on the accelerator. "Your pride is what beat you" he told Cyborg, getting out and dusting his hands. "You kept the electrics in your audio system alive and well, you wanted that to be able to play at all times." He gestured to the discarded parts around him, "so I took a few parts out and used the wires from that to hook into the T-Car, I almost blew the damn thing, do you want to be able to listen to your car from Titans Tower if you ever go to the moon?"

Cyborg's lip was too busy trembling to formulate a reply. "My baby" he managed. "Those speaker systems… I had it just perfect."

Rune picked up a piece off the ground. "It'll be quicker with both of us" he told his team mate. "Let's get to work, we'll make her better than perfect."

An hour passed and they had only barely reached halfway. Rune was almost guilty about how much damage he had inflicted on Cyborg's pride and joy for the sake of a challenge. "You know it's usually Raven who's down here helping me with the T-Car" he remarked.

"Yeah I hear she's been a bit busy" Rune said, keeping his head low inside the hood of the car, pretending the nut he was busy tightening required much more concentration than it actually did.

"I hear she's been busy with you" Cyborg remarked, wiping the grease off his hands with an oily rag as he walked over. He put two fingers around the nut and his hand screwed it into place as the robotic hand spun around like a drill bit on his wrist, leaving Rune with nothing to do but to look him in the eye.

"We're just friends" Rune told him. "Nothing more."

"Is that what you want?" Cyborg asked.

Rune walked around, looking for something else to piece back together, any excuse to keep him from looking Cyborg in the eyes, and his hand busy. His spirits soared when he saw something he could do, kneeling to get down to reach it. "What I want" he told Cyborg, knowing the conversation was far from over, "is to clean out the electric system I nearly fried, and maybe a regular size chilli pizza." He finished so much faster than he wished he had and sighed. "Sometimes I'm jealous of how you can be in love with a car, that'd be so much simpler."

Cyborg laughed. "I may be in love with my baby but she's just that; my baby. Not my girl."

"The crazy bumble bee girl?" Rune asked.

Cyborg fixed him with a death stare.

"Beast Boy's words" he quickly added.

"Yeah, Bee" Cyborg said, moving to examine another panel while Rune slid under the car. The feeling of something practical to do with your hands made the words come easier.

"And how's that working out for you?" Rune grunted, having to do most things manually while the electric system was down.

"Long distance is difficult" Cyborg admitted, "but we're keeping afloat."

"I haven't been close to someone in a long time" Rune said. "There's a reason for that."

"So because you have runes you blame yourself and punish yourself by keeping people at a distance?" Cyborg asked.

"I don't blame myself" Rune replied harshly. "I just protect the people I care about better from a distance."

"Hey" Cyborg said, grabbing Rune's ankle and pulling him out from where he was pretending to still be held up by the same problem he could've fixed three times over by now. "Being dangerous to people isn't a choice, it's a fact, it's part of being 'super'. What we choose to do with that potential to be dangerous, that's what makes us a hero or not."

"What does that have to do with being close to people?" Rune asked, his voice growing defensive and angry.

"Because you don't have to save a city to be a hero" Cyborg told him, "the power you have over someone's heart isn't a choice, the way you can make it or break it in a sentence? That makes you dangerous. But every lover is dangerous to their partner, choosing to hold onto that heart tighter than your own is what makes you that person's hero."

"So deliberately endangering the ones you love most by making them targets is heroic?" Rune asked skeptically.

"A hero needs to know what, and who, they're fighting for, or they could lose their way" Cyborg continued, "and either way, it's not really your choice to make, it's theirs."

"But Raven-" Rune started, then caught Cyborg's eye. "For example Raven", he amended, "purely because she's the only single girl on the team, I endanger her from the runes but if her emotions grow out of control then not only would she endanger me but everyone, I don't want to put her in that situation, I know what it's like to be afraid of your powers."

"Let me ask you a question" Cyborg said, finishing buffing a panel and grinning as the car responded with a chrome finish and the electrics system powered up with yet another security addition. Rune had already mentally mapped out how he was going to break in next time. "Does the risk Raven pose to you matter to you? If she told you she wanted to be together would you care about the risk?"

"Raven would never do that" Rune replied.

"Just answer the question" Cyborg insisted.

Rune shrugged. "No."

"Then why should you get to decide whether you should be together or not?" Cyborg implored. "I'm not saying you should kick her door in, sweep her up in your arms and kiss her…"

"Definitely not" Rune muttered.

"…but you need to show something" Cyborg told him, "because if you don't, someone else will."

Rune remembered the care in Beast Boy's voice. "I know" he said, choosing his words carefully. "I just don't want to tread on any toes. But I do want to… it's complicated" he finished, almost exasperatedly.

Cyborg just nodded, Rune had no idea how his friend could understand and be so normal like he was just listening to news on the radio. "Raven's a complicated gal" he told Rune, giving him a pat on the back. As he walked out he turned. "There's just two things I need to tell you."

"And those are?"

"Raven's like a sister to me", Cyborg said, "hurt her and I'll hurt you."

Rune nodded, "understandable, I know what it's like with vengeful brothers." Cyborg frowned at the tone Rune's voice took but didn't query it. "What's the other thing?"

"Make sure of what you feel before you try to make things complicated with Raven. Because if you get her to open up to you and then reject what she shows, she will close up so tight and never let anyone in ever again."

Rune nodded sombrely as Cyborg left him to finish up, sensing he'd need the time alone. Rune sighed, after everything Cyborg had told him, he still needed to go talk to Raven like Beast Boy had asked, and given Rune's suspicions about what the shapeshifter felt for the empath, if Rune didn't go talk to her Beast Boy would know. Rune sighed as he once again delayed with the simple clean up job that Cyborg had left him to, just checking everything was tightened and in proper place. Rune finished up and cleaned his hands, noting that after Cyborg had used it it had just made Rune's hands even dirtier, if anything. He sighed and left the garage. The afternoon had nearly ended by the time Rune had figured out what to say, making his way to Raven's room. Entering to find it empty, Rune looked around in confusion before spotting something out Raven's window.

* * *

Raven floated a few feet above the rocky beach on the west side of Titans Island, facing away from the mainland. A rock floated in front of her, coated in black energy. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos" she hissed, the rock ignored her. Her nostrils flared in annoyance and she focussed her gaze, feeling the air rush into her lungs. "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" The rock shuddered, then crumbled inwards, leaking a fine powder as Raven constricted the energy and slowly crushed the rock inwards. She let go of the energy as the rock fell to the ground in a shower of pebbles.

"Wow, what did the rock do to you?" A voice behind her asked.

Raven looked to see Rune walking down the stony path towards her. "Our enemies are getting stronger," Raven replied emotionlessly, "they are executing their plans and they are becoming lethal, Starfire stands as evidence of that. We need to increase our strength in kind. Azarath Metrion Zinthos!" She commanded, lifting another rock up.

"At least she's still standing" Rune commented.

"Because she was lucky, and Tamaranean" Raven replied. "What if it was Robin? What if it was Beast Boy next time? What if it was me? Or you?" The rock exploded as she finished, making Raven flinch.

Rune whistled. "With you able to do that, I think I'll be okay."

"Did you really come down to make idle chatter?" Raven asked, pausing just to examine the sun starting to kiss the horizon as it began to set.

"No" Rune said, sitting down on one of the larger stones that Raven hadn't crushed. "People are worried about you, and not just me. Beast Boy came to me this morning, he's noticed you've been acting strange."

"And Beast Boy is the master of perception now is he?" Raven asked sarcastically. Rune felt the rock shudder underneath him.

"He cares about you" Rune said, "you don't have to be a genius to know when something is up with someone you care about."

Raven took in a shallower breath. She knew she cared about Rune, but how much was the question. But unless she accessed the empathetic bridge between them, she couldn't tell what he was feeling. He was this emotionless mask that somehow managed to hold this tidal wave of feeling back, Raven could only imagine the havoc she could wreak with that. So if she cared for Rune like she knew she did, why couldn't she tell without having to ask? What made him this exception that she was blind to? "Beast Boy has a kind heart," Raven spoke, her eyes fixed on the sunset that cast her front in light and accentuated the shadows over her face, "if a little misdirected."

"Meaning?" Rune asked.

"First it was Terra" Raven said, "he longed for Terra with all his heart and that didn't come out right. But then she sacrificed herself and he devoted himself to her, you don't know how much time he spent down there talking to her dead statue."

"But she came back?" Rune asked, voicing his thoughts.

Raven nodded, "and Beast Boy embarrassed himself in his desperation to win her back, he's not exactly a genius but he behaved in a way that was beyond stupid, he abandoned us on missions chasing after her. Robin and Starfire. Cyborg and Bumblebee. Everyone is developing relationships and Beast Boy is feeling left out."

"You're saying he wants you to follow a trend?" Rune asked incredulously.

"He's the youngest" Raven told him, "he just wants to fit in and do what the older kids do, it's natural. Beast Boy doesn't want me, he wants someone, anyone. He's seventeen, stupid and horny, me being the only female who isn't falling for anyone makes him think I am the target of his affections, his challenge, a mountain to climb."

Rune winced internally when Raven said she wasn't falling for anyone. His feelings were her were one-sided after all, he knew that was the case but somehow he had been unable to let go of that hope, that mad hope that maybe there was a chance. _It was stupid to hope _he thought to himself. "You're only a year older than he is" Rune pointed out.

"And a century wiser" Raven returned, "I know what is emotion, and what is lust. Beast Boy is too young and immature to know what love is, if he knew then I guarantee he wouldn't have thrown an enormous glob of mud into Terra's face."

Rune winced comically. "That can't have improved his chances."

"And now that she can't, or won't, remember him he has looked to who he can go after next;" Raven said, gesturing with her hands; "me."

"That must be hard, knowing someone has feelings for you but knowing you don't feel the same way back."

Raven cocked her head. "Usually it's the person with the feelings everyone feels sorry for."

Rune shook his head in reply. "That's the easy route. But the other person is trapped knowing no matter what they do, they have to hurt someone else. They have to actively search for a way to hurt someone in the gentlest way possible, that sucks."

"You know from experience?"

"No, I was in Beast Boy's position" Rune admitted.

"Who did you like?" Raven asked.

"Rose's best friend" Rune grinned, realising that being with Raven made him not only able to talk about his past, but able to talk without feeling every word clogged with regret. "She pushed me away and I found comfort with Rose, then I found more than comfort."

"Do you miss her?" Raven asked, almost stupidly.

Rune nodded, looking out at the sun. "Every day. But I think she'd be proud looking back from whatever's after this. If there's a Hell there's a Heaven right?" He asked rhetorically. "But I think she'd be proud." He pulled his communicator out and looked down at 'T', "of what I've become." He put it back away and looked towards the last of the fading sunset, "of who I've become." His eyes flickered towards his feet but looked back up again as he fell into shadow. Raven was standing over him, the sun silhouetting her as the rays surrounded her, giving her the appearance of a glowing aura. Rune was almost dumbstruck by the sight, though it wouldn't have been too far off correct to have called it lovestruck. She extended a gentle hand towards him.

"Anyone would" she told him, soft and sincere. Rune's eyes met hers and swam with a gratitude and longing that brought up a feeling that forced her to swallow before she could speak. "Let's go back inside" she told him. Rune nodded and took her hand. She marvelled about how the skin of his palms could feel so course but she could still feel the gentleness in his grip, it was firm, unwilling to let her go casually but comforting, like she would always have a place in its warm clasp. She didn't slide her fingers into the gaps between his but it was still nice the grip he held into her with. She found herself fighting back a smile from all the feelings generated by the trivialness of his hand against hers. Her palms were soft, both from her history devoid of manual labour and her powers meaning she didn't have to work a lot with her hands. It was nice to feel like this she realised, though she kept the floodgates closed on her smile, it would not do to show Rune the effect he had on her, especially when they had both agreed to being friends. He stood and she crushed the rock he had been sitting off with a flash of a smirk towards him. He was easily taller than Raven, just taller than Robin but Cyborg still towered over him. He remembered Robin and he had to go back-to-back for Cyborg to judge using laser technology, such was their competitive streak of camaraderie. Beast Boy had been disqualified for changing into a giraffe when they gave him a bit of ribbing for him being a bit shorter. It had been funny until he had taken a step further and a brachiosaurus' head had erupted out of the roof of Titans Tower, which wasn't appreciated when combined with the fact it had been heavily raining all day.

Rune shook his head out of the memory, surprised he could be distracted when he was so close to Raven, could feel her skin on his, even if it was just through their hands. He looked in her violet eyes that mirrored his, he could never believe that considering how lost he could get inside them, Rune knew he could look into them forever and not get bored, there was always another shimmering detail to be surprised by and immerse himself inside. She let him go, his hand falling away back to his side, she broke her eye contact at the same time and Rune felt like an idiot again not realising when he had crossed the lines of friendship that he was confined to. He made a mental note to drown the feelings for both their sakes, not knowing that Raven was telling herself the same thing, breaking the eye contact so she would not give away the same crushing feeling when she ended the contact, exposing her warmed palm to the growing chill of the evening air. "Let's go back before it gets colder" she suggested.

Rune nodded his head blandly in agreement, the feeling shattered. Walking back, Raven even had the nerve to stumble and Rune's arms flew out to steady her, wrapping her in his arms, all to let her go again, Rune could almost feel the pieces of himself he was tearing off in the fight between his head and his heart. Cyborg's advice rang through his ears about how he needed to make a move, but he couldn't, Raven's eyes just had a way of finding his and then he was petrified. When she made no move towards him, the awkward atmosphere choked them and Rune cursed himself for bringing this between them again. The self-addressed mental note of "fucking idiot" was now nearly his most frequent thought, constantly trailing all the romantic daydreams of Raven that could creep through his mental defences and take a hold throughout the day. They reached the door and Raven pressed the button for the elevator.

"You joining?" Raven asked, walking halfway in when she realised Rune was no longer in step with her.

"Nah I think I'll take the stairs" Rune said, seemingly looking everywhere but to her.

"Oh" was all she could manage at first. To say goodnight to Rune tugged at something inside her. She enjoyed his company, she liked when he was close to her. When they both let their defences down she could feel a connection closer than she had felt with anyone else, her connection with Malchior had comforted her but it hadn't lit this fire inside her she felt with Rune, the one she was desperate to smother. "Yeah. Exercise, guess it's good to have priorities settled." God she was lame at this. Her calf was going to match her irises with coloured bruises if she kept giving herself avalanches of things to kick herself about. She was going to throttle Passion senseless the next time she met with her emotions. She stood in the doorway so that they wouldn't close just yet, anything to prolong the moment. "See you tomorrow, I guess" she muttered to her feet.

"Just one more second" Rune asked, pausing Raven. "About who I am, I just wanted to say thanks."

"Thanks for what?" Raven asked.

"It didn't change the way you thought of me" Rune said, "you still brush me off exactly the same" he joked with a grin.

Raven let a small smile show to Rune but for both of them, the happiness was superficial only. "It was nothing" she said.

"Brushing me off again" Rune smiled, this time there was a spark of a true smile playing about their lips.

"It is nothing though" Raven told him, "everyone here has suffered in some way or another to become who we are. You know about me and Trigon but there was Cyborg's accident, Beast Boy abandoned his only friends in the Doom Patrol as a personal protest. Robin has issues I shouldn't delve into and Starfire came to Earth as a hostage. You've suffered more than most, but accepting a dark past isn't out of the ordinary here."

Rune shook his head with a sad smile. "Nevertheless, I wanted to thank you." _You need to show something…_ And finishing that sentence, he took two quick strides and wrapped his arms around her. He felt Raven stiffen immediately against his body as a reflex but after a brief moment, he felt the suppressed inhale of breath leave her body as her hands lifted from her sides to hold against his back. Rune held her tight to his body, not enough to crush her but enough to feel the heat of her body seep into his and vice versa. Her breasts were soft against his hardened chest, his hands looped just below the ribcage to avoid hurting them as her finger curled into the nook of the top of his shoulder blades. She pressed her cheek into his collarbone, Rune hoped she couldn't hear his heartbeat going wild inside his body. Rune didn't know how else to put it, but it just felt _right _to have Raven in his arms this way. As she reciprocated his hug, he felt himself almost melt into her embrace, his cheek touched hers as his chin hung just above the nook at her shoulder and neck. He could hear her breath faintly rustling the hair around his ear, he kept his own near silent out of fear, fear of her letting go. Her hood was pushed back and fell gently off her head, her violet hair filling his eyes if he hadn't closed them to feel more of this moment. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt so much at peace, certainly not since the world ended, since his world ended. The tension simply drained out of his body like water down an unplugged sink, Raven was the one thing that could unstop it in him. Rune could feel Raven holding him with stiff but delicate fingers, he wished he could stay in their grasp, for her never to let go. The world seemed so much simpler this way, there were no demons, there was no Slade, there was just Raven and him together in this moment. They held onto each other for what seemed like an eternity, with no one down here to see, they were finally able to stop caring. Raven's hands slipped down as Rune finally stepped away. Her eyelids fluttered open and Rune had to fight off the urge to embrace her all over again. She matched his eyes with her own, her breath deepening as she regained her sanity. "You shouldn't have done that" she breathed, her own heart was beating as fast as Rune's.

"No I shouldn't" Rune agreed, "but I'm glad I did. Goodnight Raven."

Raven took two steps back and the elevator doors closed. Rune watched her until the last slit of light was swallowed up before he let an enormous smile crack his features, Cyborg had been right and although Rune wanted nothing less than to chase Raven again, that longing, that desperation in his chest had subsided by just the smallest amount, and for now that was enough. Rune let that smile stay on his face as he bounded up three stairs at a time, unable to stop the happiness from driving his every movement, he could've almost skipped back to his room. He now knew the truth of his heart and how to relieve it. There was so much still covered in shadow and doubt but right now he couldn't care, he was on top of the world and inside the elevator, unable to stop blushing wildly, her cheeks flaming red, Raven was coming to terms with the same feeling. She held her cowl as low as it could go to cover her face as she went straight to her room, her heart beating wildly beneath her slim back leotard. _Oh I'm in trouble _she thought, though the curving of her lips as her cheeks pulled to extend her smile begged to differ with the thought.

Rune had almost reached his room when he stopped and hid his smile. Beast Boy was leaning against the wall beside his door, one leg was hitched up to press the sole of his boot against the wall. "Did you talk to Raven?" He asked.

Rune nodded seriously. "I did, at length."

"And?"

Rune swallowed. "I think she's going to be just fine, I think she knows what she wants." He didn't add that she most definitely knew who she didn't want, it would be wrong and cruel for Beast Boy to hear that truth from Rune's lips. The issue was between Raven and Beast Boy, Rune wading in would only make Beast Boy angry and Rune didn't want to drive a wedge between anyone, though, he considered, he would choose Raven over a pretty and clean reputation any day of the week. While he hoped he would able to have both, a bad feeling generated from the look Beast Boy had fixed him with told him it would not be so easy.


	15. Flowers in Bloom

The winter seemed to melt away as the weeks passed, both Slade and Red X were keeping very low profiles. All the better for their safety too, Robin had almost fantasised about killing them both. Starfire had made a full recovery under his watch and had rejoined the Titans as they resumed to train harder than ever, knowing full well that Slade was somewhere out there, planning an assault of the tower to retrieve the last gem. The preparations had resulted in the Titans becoming almost reclusive, anxious to leave the island, often Robin stayed behind on missions, directing the team by communicator. The temperature was beginning to warm up as the first days of Spring touched upon Jump City but the atmosphere between the Teen Titans and the city that had grown reliant on them to protect them was only growing colder. "I understand your concerns commissioner but my position hasn't changed" Robin told the screen, his tone flat and keeping out the frustration that was wearing thin with the older man. He was in a private communications room in the tower, he didn't want to have this conversation from his lounge.

"Jump City needs Titans" the Commissioner of the Jump City Police Force growled back. "Violent crime is up, organised crime is up, my boys are working fourteen hour shifts to try and pick up all your slack while you are relaxing day in and day out, we're risking this crime rate escalating to that of Gotham."

"You have some way before that becomes reality" Robin cooly condescended. "I am confident your men can handle the situation but seeing as they have been unable to locate Slade's base of operations, protection of our dangerous assets remains our highest priority. If Slade's plan succeeds then the entire city could be at risk."

"Can I be blunt with you?" The Titan's previous feats in saving the city had earned Robin enough respect not to bear with insults but the Boy Wonder could sense they were having to be bit back.

"Please" he gestured cooly.

"You are turning away from a city that could sink into the shit while you hide away, checking the locks on the doors."

"Which is worth the time considering last time Slade infiltrated our defences easily, I almost lost a member of this team."

"I lost two men last night!" The man roared. "The gangs are getting bolder and they're getting their hands on more powerful weaponry, we've got a potential arms race fuelling tensions that could lead to a full-blown gang war. My boys can't keep up, and knowing that no one has their backs anymore doesn't do wonders for the morale."

"My condolences for your men" Robin offered politely, "but I would focus on curbing the trade of illegal firearms in Jump City to calm the situation rather then yelling at a teenager."

Robin almost swore the man was shaking with rage.

"I can offer a compromise" he finally offered. "A titan under your command for certain shifts, they return to the tower when I demand it or under their own judgment."

The man's lip twitched in annoyance. "You're offering me shit and expecting to appraise it as five star cuisine."

"It's the best offer you're getting" Robin said, keeping his tone civil, barely. "Defence of the tower stands as our highest priority."

"You pull a lot of favours to stay nice and cozy in that tower." The commissioner leant in close to the camera. "Remember that they can be taken away, I expect a Titan within the hour."

"They'll be there when I send them" Robin replied curtly, ending the transmission. "Prick" he muttered. He turned to see Starfire in the doorway waiting for him. "Starfire!" He said in surprise, then rubbed the back of his head. "Please excuse my language" he said, having the grace to look ashamed.

"There is nothing to excuse" she told him with a smile, "on my world we could call him something that would translate to far worse, something more along the lines of 'glorified sack of shit'".

Robin gaped at her.

"What?" She asked innocently.

"It's just…" he stammered, "it's just I've never heard you swear before."

"Not in your tongue" she giggled. "I promise I am more than just the innocent girl you think me to be."

Robin found his lips curling. "Well I did want to call him a fat bastard" he drawled in mock bravado to Starfire.

Her cheeks powdered red as she closed her eyes and smiled. The words soon began flying between them.

"Douche."

"Pretentious son of a bitch."

"Head's so far up his backside."

"Arrogant wanker."

Eventually the two were smiling and laughing so much they couldn't stand at insulting the police commissioner in absentia. Insulting a member of the authorities felt almost taboo to Robin, he had seen Batman dismiss officers as ineffective but actively insulting them was a big step further. Doing it with the perfect princess Starfire was just icing to the cake of breaking the rules. Robin couldn't remember the last time he had actually let his head fall back and laugh, there was happiness, there had been moments that had made him smile but to actively _laugh, _it was the best therapy in the world. Robin heard Starfire's higher-pitched giggle and it only made him laugh more, the commissioner forgotten as they laughed for the simple reason that they could. Robin rolled up and met Starfire's eyes perilously close to his. he was suddenly struck as the last time she and he had talked, he had told her Slade came before his commitment to her. He had spent hours telling himself that Slade came first but this half hour, he realised with a shock at the time spent, with Starfire, he had known he wouldn't have picked anything over this. Starfire had likewise frozen opposite him, unsure of what was going to happen next, what was supposed to happen next. Robin's masked white eyes looked into Starfire's emerald irises, the crisp symphony of colour making echoes in his own mind. "Starfire" he said quietly, then the next moment her lips were crashing into his as she pressed against him. He wrapped his arms around her back as he fell back, taking her with him. He could feel his pants tightening as Starfire's body pressed hard against his, the furious passion had shifted from their laughter into the lust they had for each other. Starfire pushed Robin hard against the ground, pinning him in place as his mouth exploded with the taste of her tongue. She was relentless, her breasts pressed hard against his chest as she pushed herself against him as hard as she could. Robin had never known Starfire like this, never known she was capable of this, it was strange and exciting and crazy and magical all at the same time. Her fiery red hair fell down amongst Robin's face, surrounding their kiss as it shone and nearly glittered around them. Starfire's hands slid up his muscular chest, Robin almost swallowed his tongue, and Starfire's, from the shock. His breath through his nose loudly as it tried to keep up with his heart, Starfire seemed to be more like her sister than he'd thought. Robin felt the heat flare in his chest as Starfire dove her tongue into his mouth, exploring, she had perfected this. Robin had never been so overcome before, with any emotion, he wanted to tear her clothing off and take her on the cold floor of the communications room. He wanted to bury himself deep between Starfire's thighs and feel her walls convulse along his length as he pushed their pleasure over the brink. Starfire pressed her hips into his pelvis, sending another rush flaring through him as reality crashed and merged with imagination, Robin was confused and excited and shocked and mad with lust, they had never acted like this before, it was like he had wandered into a dream. The worst thing with the best kind of dreams though, Robin realised, you always had to wake up.

The screen suddenly buzzed as the speakers declared there was an incoming call. "That's for me!" Cyborg yelled from a few corridors away.

The pair quickly split and managed a casual "hello" to Cyborg who charged past them without bothering to notice. "Bee!" He yelled as he answered the call.

"Hey Sparky" Bumble Bee purred, "we have company" she remarked. It was then Cyborg finally managed to divert enough attention to notice his two teammates standing in the doorway.

"We were just leaving" Starfire replied effortlessly while Robin could only muster an awkward nod, trying to disguise his arousal that was straining at his tights. He managed to follow Starfire as she casually strolled out of the room, her hands swinging past her hips where Robin's hands had been rooted. He pushed his way out of the room to see Starfire already half a dozen paces in front of him and pulling away with every stride of her long gorgeous legs.

"Star" Robin called out, sounding like he had gravel caught in his throat.

She turned around with a pleasant, innocent smile on her face. "I was thinking this place could use a redecoration."

"A redecoration?" Asked Robin, completely thrown off by her change. Was she toying with him? Robin was feeling like a harp while Starfire's gentle fingers plucked and played at him. Robin respected, loved and hated her all at the same time for it; no matter what, Starfire could always find a way to catch him on his brink and pull him back from oblivion by filling him to the bursting point with one emotion or another. "Wait, let me guess. Another Tamaranean tradition?"

She bounced her head with her unique enthusiasm. "Quite so." Robin wasn't quite sure of what to make of the entire situation but with his heart, mind and crotch absolutely bursting with the thought of Starfire, he was quite sure at that moment he would have done anything she had asked him to. Starfire was twisting and wrapping him around her finger, he shook his head as he realised he had never ever given her this kind of credit before, she was just full of surprises today.

* * *

The redecoration of Titan's Tower served well to lift everyone's spirits, which had been stumbling after the encounter at Pier 41. Cyborg had changed his arm into a paint hose and of course had 'mistakenly' blasted Beast Boy as well. He had been chased down the hall by a charging green mammoth with a trunk full of the stuff and after missing and blasting Starfire, the entire redecoration had been put on hold for an all-in paint fight, even Raven got involved, lifting eight cans with her powers and upturning them over Rune and Beast Boy as they came round the corner looking for her. After over an hour of mayhem and hilarity, it finally dawned that they had used a tower's worth of paint on the one floor, or on each other to be more specific. Robin flopped down amongst the group in the lounge, all of them panting from the effort expended. Robin's spiky hair dripped orange, all of them looked like collages of a demented six year old, Rune was more green than Beast Boy, who had been on the receiving end of Cyborg's paint blast of azure blue. Raven was covered in both white and black; she looked more checkered than a chessboard. Starfire looked like she'd been caught in a collision of yellow and brown and Cyborg had so much black paint on him that he nearly blended in with the sofa. Everyone was too busy catching their breath to talk but every time any of them made eye contact with each other, they couldn't help succumbing to fits of laughter at the sight of each other, even when they were struggling to breathe as it was, even Raven couldn't hold back the small giggles bubbling inside her. Starfire shifted over and lay against Robin between the V of his legs, her head resting against his chest, listening to his heart beat. They met eyes and shared a moment before she closed her eyes, burrowing her head further in. Robin rested for a moment before he came upon something in his thoughts. "Star?" He asked.

"Yes?" She returned softly.

"There's no Tamaranean tradition for redecoration is there?"

She smiled beautifully before shaking her head gently, "no."

Robin looked around at his team sitting in the puddles of paint laughing at each other, all their cares forgotten. _They needed this _he realised, after Pier 41, another incident where another one of them was even closer to death, a trend that was becoming disturbingly frequent, everyone was becoming bogged with the thought that the next mission could be their last or the last of one of their friends but looking around at everyone grouped around their circle, Robin felt an overwhelming reassurance, this feeling about how much they had all survived, this feeling of almost immortality, they would all get through this, he resolved. He would get his whole team through Slade, through Red X, there was nothing that could stop them when they were together. Robin looked down at Starfire who was looking at their friends with the same thoughts in her head and surrendered to a rueful grin, he had again underestimated her. It was so easy to perceive her as almost naive with her view of people and the world but again she had seen what he could not, and had executed her plan to bring everyone back into happiness with nothing less than perfection. How could he have thought he could have done this without her? He kissed the top of her head, ignoring the taste of paint that was streaked through her hair. They all were beaming ear-to-ear to each other, Robin couldn't think of tactics and missions if he tried, it was so rare and golden a moment that they all shared together he didn't want to upset it, instead he sat with Starfire close to him, trying to save the feelings in his heart, trying to capture and hold onto the moment.

It was nearly half an hour before anyone got up to clean themselves off, trails of painted footprints all leading back to their separate rooms. Raven had donned her cloak after a shower and was busy towelling her hair when there was a knock at her door. She opened it to see Rune with a group of yellow flowers in his hand. She cast her eyes down to them and back up, uninterested. "You want something?"

"Starfire said we needed to add some colour to the place" Rune said.

"That was just a trick to lift our spirits" Raven replied, "or did you not realise that during the hour of nearly drowning each other in paint?"

Rune shrugged, "either way, I think it was still a good idea." He offered the flowers. "A bit of colour?"

Raven looked down at them and suddenly they combusted into black flame. "Oops" she said in a voice dripping with sarcasm. "Was really looking forward to those."

Rune shrugged again with the seeds of a grin on his face. "I figured daffodils were a bit much" he said, bringing his other hand from behind his back. In it was another group of flowers, this time orange, smaller and the petals thinner. "Gerberas" he told her, "more commonly known to everyone else as 'orange daisies', great growing conditions on the island actually."

"When did you become so knowledgable Flower Boy?" Raven asked.

Rune smiled, "had a job at a florist's while I was drifting through Metropolis, probably one of the few good moments I had after going on the run."

"Why'd you leave?" Raven asked.

Rune's smile disappeared. "One of my runes burnt the place down" he told her. "I left every cent I had ever made in the wreckage for the owner and left again, she's a good woman, she deserved better. She said gerberas were my signature flower." He offered them out to Raven, "So what do you say?"

Raven waited a moment before she reached out and took them from Rune's delicate grip. "I'm not watering them" she quickly said, "when they die, they will not be replaced."

Rune smile widened, "not a problem, I can find more."

Raven rolled her eyes before closing the door firmly in Rune's face. She looked down at the flowers in her hand and realised she had a smile of her own adorning her features, albeit small. She pulled her small vase over and carefully deposited the flowers inside, filling it up with water from her bathroom faucet and leaving it beside her bed. The bright orange stood out captivatingly against the mostly grey backdrop of her room. "You know, not bad" Raven murmured to herself. She picked up a book and took it to the bed to read, not failing to notice she had sat right beside the gerberas.

An hour or so passed before Robin gave a message for the team to convene in the lounge; he had found something. "What have we got?" Rune asked.

"This" Robin said, holding up a plastic bag. Inside was a note, reading _Bad luck with the gem baby xx. _Accompanying the note was a rose, red delicate petals and sharp green thorns. "Delivered to the Tower a few minutes ago."

"Since when was Slade the romantic type?" Beast Boy asked, scratching his head.

"I don't think this is Slade" Robin told him. "The kisses at the end of the tease, the rose, 'Bad luck', it all points to one person."

"Jinx" Cyborg grimaced.

Robin nodded. "It looks like she's shown her true colours once again."

"But what of Kid Flash?" Starfire asked. "Even if Jinx was truly not a friend, surely he would not allow her to act in shadows once more."

"He's either oblivious, working with her or she's already taken him down" Robin said coldly. "But from this note, it seems that Slade reached out to at least one of the graduates of HIVE academy again. Let's go pay them a visit."

"I have Jinx's last known location" Cyborg declared.

Robin nodded, "Titans, go!"

* * *

Jinx was curled into Kid Flash's chest as they lay together in bed. Her pink hair was not in the pink tendrils she usually styled them in, for now she had it laying loose around her shoulders. It gave her look a surprising softness, though her cat-like irises kept their mischievous sparks of playfulness. Wally was lying back whilst she ran the tips of her fingers in idle spirals around his chest, giving the few short hairs devilish little tugs every now and then. Wally winced as she yanked one out and grinned evilly up at him. "That hurt?" She asked innocently.

"I only have a few" Wally complained, "air friction is hard to beat even in the suit."

"What about the hair on your head?" Jinx asked.

He winked at her. "Trade secret."

She rolled her eyes and yanked another hair out of his chest, making him yelp. She cackled at him and he silenced her by rolling over and kissing her, pinning her body against the bed with his. He winked against as he kissed, his heartbeat sending ripples across his body as he pushed it against Jinx, draped in the bedsheets.

"You're mine" he whispered to her.

A pink spark ran down between her fingers at her side and suddenly a bed spring broke, causing Wally to lose his balance and Jinx instantly took advantage, shoving him off and taking advantage, her things on either side of him. "I'm whose?" She teased, twirling a pink lock of hair around her finger. Wally grinned in reply as he slid his hands up her thighs onto her hips as he tried to sit up to kiss her. Jinx shoved him back down and grinned, she was going to enjoy this. She leaned down to tease him with her tongue but screamed as suddenly the bedroom room exploded. Robin retracted his foot as he marched in, flanked by five other unsmiling teens. The sheets fell down around, revealing one of her breasts. Wally suddenly disappeared from underneath her and rushed past her in a blur, Jinx finding herself fully redressed. Wally sped around the room, intending to stop right in front of the Titans to demand what they were doing intruding on a friend like this but suddenly was halted. Wally struggled for a second before realising he wasn't moving. He was entrapped in ice, it encased him from the top of his shoulders to the floor. "No powers please" Robin said in a steely tone as Cyborg lowered a smoking arm. "We'd like this conversation to end without a fight."

"You sure have an interesting way of showing it" Jinx said from the bed, extending a hand towards Robin but before she could conjure her magic, a ball of black energy materialised around her hand, preventing her power from leaving.

"That would be a bad idea" Raven told her, an arm of her own outstretched in reply. Jinx glared at her before lowering her hand in compliance. A pink spark fixed her hair back to her usual style while her eyes narrowed on Robin.

"What the fuck is this all about?" She demanded as Wally took a quick breath from the cold. Robin tossed the plastic bag wordlessly to her. She glanced over the contents and looked back up again. "I didn't do anything and what is 'the gem' anyhow?"

"None of your business" Robin told her. "The rose is your signature, bad luck is just frosting. When was the last time you saw Slade?"

"Slade?" Asked Jinx. "Not for years, what's he planning?"

"None of your business" Robin repeated, stonewalling her. "Kid Flash, can you account for her whereabouts all of today?"

Wally nodded between shivers, he was unused to the cold. "We've been together all day, no way she could've gotten to you."

"We still don't know how they even got to the tower, he can run on water when he gets the speed" Cyborg reminded Robin.

Wally's eyes widened, "we didn't do anything! Someone has to be setting us up!"

Robin's patience was straining. He punched straight through the ice and grabbed Wally, pushing him up against the wall and lifting him off his feet. "Who?" He roared.

"I don't know!" Wally yelled, "Slade, or someone worse, I don't know! You haven't even told us what this is all about."

Robin studied him a moment before letting him slide back to the ground. Wally blurred for a moment as he vibrated to restore heat before he walked over to Jinx, standing slightly in front of her protectively. Jinx slipped her hand into his. "We're in hiding" she said, "we wanted time off being titans, how did you find us again?"

"We never lost you" Cyborg replied.

"Careful" Kid Flash warned, "tracking us was exactly what gave the Brain so much power."

Robin retreated into his mind, examining all the clues and how they connected like he had been taught so many times. _If Slade wanted us to think Jinx was responsible for the rose knowing we'd go after her, it could be that he does have a plan involving Jinx, perhaps he wants a Titan to help him infiltrate the tower, Jinx being a former associate makes him think it would be easier to turn her. _No, that was too easy, the pieces fell too snugly into place and Slade never created such simplistic plans, his arrogance made him formulate plans that one could only appreciate the brilliance of once it was already too late. _The flower was never meant to appear from Jinx, it's a new twist from Slade, maybe even a new player in this game. But still, even he wouldn't overlook how much it coincided with Jinx's habits. He knew we would go after Jinx. And knowing that… _Robin's train of thought was interrupted as the walls suddenly began exploding as gunfire erupted from seemingly every direction. Robin threw himself to the ground and felt the team following his lead except for Wally who blurred as he phased in and out of the bullets. Bullets screamed past overhead and plaster was thrown everywhere as the assault continued to intensify. A digital clock was ripped apart and a picture frame shredded in the mayhem of breaking glass and sparking wires. Robin pushed himself as low into the ground as he could go, he could feel his hair swaying from the ripples in the air from the bullets just above. More plaster crumbled and scattered itself on his back and through his hair, if this attack kept up much longer the entire building was going to be brought down on top of them. A gut-wrenching scream pierced the air and turned Robin's insides cold just by the sound. Jinx was on her back, blood was running from a cluster holes in her shoulder, all collected around her collarbone. The gunfire ceased and Robin was almost first to Jinx. She was coughing trying to keep her breath going. "Get her to the medical bay in Titans Tower" he told Wally cradling her, "we can take care-"

"You've done enough" snarled Wally. "I think we'll take our chances with Jump City General." Finishing the statement, he scooped up the pale Jinx in his arms and disappeared in a flash of yellow. The six remaining titans pulled themselves up off the floor, brushing what was was left of the room off themselves. Robin surveyed the structure, it was an absolute wreck. It was a miracle that it hadn't collapsed, though it would definitely need to be demolished.

"Robin" Cyborg called, "that apartment."

Robin walked over to the hole that had once been a window that Cyborg was standing at and followed his gaze. It was clear to see that the windows of the apartment across the street had been blown out and even clearer was the massive black machine guns behind it. "Beyond military grade, that thing belongs on top of a tank. This was Slade."

"Obviously, but he couldn't have done that instantly" Cyborg pointed out. "He must've had that place for weeks, maybe even months."

"And if Kid Flash and Jinx went into hiding recently, how could he have this already set up?" Robin continued, his right hand squeezing tight around his left fist. "That pair might not be as innocent as they claim."

Cyborg shrugged. "This seems a little extreme just to throw us off bait."

"Either way, we can't trust anyone but ourselves" Robin declared, the others nodded around him. "Even if they aren't working with Slade, Slade is working to make sure they don't work with us."

"So what do we do now?" Beast Boy asked. "No back-up and no leads, do we just wait for Slade to come at us?"

"We have a lead" Robin said. "We have that rose, we need to find out where it came from, who else may have had their hands on it. And we always have back-up, we have each other." Seeing reassurance on all their faces, Robin lead the way out, knowing that while they had a host of new questions needing answers, they had begun to clear a few and while the light was still dark, they were moving the right way down the tunnel.


	16. Relationships Old & New

The next morning everyone awoke early in the morning with no pretences; it was time to work. Robin started in Cyborg's workshop where he was busy dismantling the machine guns. "Anything?" Robin asked.

Cyborg's finger turned back from the power drill as he shook his head. "I was thinking this was military hardware so we'd have a have a leak somewhere we could follow, or at least plug. But there are no serial numbers, no signatures, nothing to trace; Slade ripped off the specs then manufactured the weapons himself."

Robin fixed the murderous barrels with a stare, being so close in their presence with such silence seemed ominous, as if they were just waiting to unload on another innocent with murderous intent. "With nothing less than a host of improvements no doubt. Keep on it."

Cyborg nodded as his finger reformed for its purpose and another screw wiggled out to join the catalogue of components laid out.

From there Robin moved to Rune and Raven who had focussed their investigations on the rose. "What have we got?"

Rune shook his head with a glum expression. "Not sure what I can tell you. This is as basic as it gets. It's had an accelerated growth, warmth was provided by heat lamps rather than the sun, water was provided by sprinklers rather than rain, it's almost a little crude even by florist standards, this definitely wasn't purchased for quality."

"Theories?"

Rune shrugged. "Maybe Slade hired a bum to buy the flower for him and the bum bought as cheap as it could and keep the spare change for himself. Maybe it's Slade taunting us, showing he doesn't need top quality to make us do what he wants."

Robin nodded slowly, taking in every fact and mentally melding his theories around them to take another shape, moving towards Slade's intentions. He looked at Raven who was floating in the lotus position.

"There's no aura on this thing to trace…" Raven started.

Rune snorted. "Why would it? The thing's more dead then alive, even before it was cut. It's got the looks but none of the life."

Robin mentally tucked away the observation later, "so no way we could track this?"

Rune shrugged, "I could maybe narrow down the shops but there's still no guarantee this wasn't just factory farmed in a greenhouse in a backyard, reward wouldn't be fitting for the effort you'd put in for this."

"The rose was to separate us from any help, show that he has all the other Titans marked but I can't believe that's all it means" Robin muttered, stroking his chin as he bent over to stare level at the flower.

"So we're without a starting point again?" Rune asked in exasperation. "How is he always so far in front, has every base covered, every time?"

"He's good" Robin replied, "so we need to be better."

"Surely there needs to be some chemical, some part of those guns, something that gives us another lead?"

"There is" Robin promised, "we just need to keep looking."

"Story of our lives" Raven muttered as Robin left.

Rune turned to Raven. "So how do you do it?"

"Do what?" Raven asked him. She had watched him through one opened eye, one closed as she was partially rooted in her meditations but now she opened both to look at him.

"Stand this" Rune told her. "Slade makes a move and we do our best to anticipate and stop the next one but we end up nowhere waiting for Slade to his next move and give us an excuse to get off our asses. When does it end?"

"It hasn't" Raven said simply. "Slade doesn't make mistakes, he makes his moves and we constantly follow after him."

"How do you cope with that?" Rune asked. "Knowing what he's capable of now, I can see how Robin could be obsessed so easily."

Raven shrugged. "I suppose we all have our coping mechanisms. Cyborg has the car, Beast Boy has the high score to chase on whichever game he's playing this week. I have my books and Starfire's just Starfire."

"That's a pretty apt way of putting it" Rune agreed. "I'm just not quite sure yet where I fit into this. Never really considered I've had the time to take a breather before."

"Well how about we do something together?" Raven heard herself ask. She refrained from clamping a hand over her mouth, though it was too late anyway, mortified at what she had just said.

"Really?" Rune asked.

Raven fought her natural instinct to blush and shrugged. "Yeah, well, y'know, you came with me to the poetry reading so I guess I need to do something of yours."

"I don't really think there is anything of mine" Rune said, looking everywhere but Raven.

"Come on" Raven said, "there has to be one thing you can't associate with anything but fun."

"Well…" Rune trailed off, in thought. "I've never had a bad moment at a carnival before."

"Jump City has a carnival" Raven said quickly. "You could tell me if it has anything on Gotham."

"It's a date" Rune grinned.

Raven's expression faltered. "A date?"

It was Rune's turn for expression to change. "I didn't mean it like that, I'm sorry, I…"

"It's okay" Raven told him, giving him a small smile, "it's a date."

Rune burst into a smile at her boldness. "So what time?" He asked. "It has to be tonight, before work takes our attentions again. Shall we say six?"

"Seven" Raven corrected. "Seven sharp. And don't you dare be late." She liked the feel of taking control and commanding this, it took more of the worry and wonder out of what they had just called a date, and Raven wanted no part of either of those emotions.

"Seven it is" Rune inclined his head. It was still ten in the morning, there was plenty of time and things to do beforehand but for the rest of the day, neither of them thought about anything else but the impending night together at the carnival. Robin was having them track down meaningless leads and perform meaningless tasks in his trivial process of elimination but to be fair, there was probably a lot more meaning to it than that, just neither Raven or Rune paid it the attention they should have. Rune kept his head down just to ensure Robin paid him the minimum amount of attention possible. Rune was working through any potential places that Slade could have had a middle man purchase a flower from, though purchase still seemed like an unlikely method of acquisition for Slade. Everything Robin had suggested about Slade's psychology went completely against this kind of method, leading him to doubt whether it was Slade himself or Slade acting through a faceless acolyte. And so at half past six after chasing as many leads with just as much success, Raven quickly swept the tower to find Rune had already left. Hiding a small smile to herself about the evening ahead, she applied to herself a small amount of perfume Starfire had given to her for a birthday that Raven had never used and promptly left the tower, flying for the carnival. Rune looked up from where he was walking out from a shop, the red bike borrowed from Robin standing beside the sidewalk, and saw the familiar silhouette clad in a blue cloak flying above and smiled; nothing could ruin tonight, there was just this energy about tonight, someone more idealistic could've called it fate but Rune preferred to wait and see. _Something big will happen tonight _he promised himself. He checked the time on a watch on the arm of another man that he would've almost certainly tried to pickpocket as Darkside. He had half an hour, plenty of time. Rune tied the gift to the back his bike and did the buckles up on his helmet before roaring off, passing the blocks as the ferris wheel against the orange sunset drew larger and the lights began to shine brighter. Rune killed the bike near where they had agreed to meet and took two breath mints, checking his breath. Satisfied, he rounded the next corner and spotted Raven, standing alone outside the ticket gates. He stepped back out of sight and up against the wall, forcing himself to be calm. He looked at the bunch of Gerberas he had just bought, was it too much? He could feel a hundred needles of doubt pining to be heard at the base of his neck, Rune took a deep breath to silence them then checked his breath again, quickly eating another two mints after. He had faced death so many times and this was what made him afraid and doubtful of himself? _Get it together _he told himself, getting ready to turn around the corner like he had casually strolled in. "Can I help you?" Asked a voice.

"No I'm fine thanks…" Rune started as he turned but as his eyes fell on the source, he gasped. He knew this face, this person, from a lifetime ago, two lifetimes ago: "Rose?"

* * *

Kid Flash sat by Jinx's bed, he was leaning forward from tiredness and fatigue, he been up all night listening to the beat of her heart rate monitor and watching the rise and fall of her chest for each breath. He held Jinx's small hand in his two, her fingers were long and graceful, her skin cool as her fingers interlocked his as he rested his forehead against them. His red hair had lost its spikiness and drooped, the tips of it fell forward just far enough to encroach on his vision. This was the longest amount of time Wally could ever remember not speaking for, the silence seemed fitting if Jinx wasn't around to hear him. She seemed so petite in her bed, like a doll, a child's toy. The memory of her scream cut into Wally's memory again and his breath came a little later, his eyes slightly widened; it wasn't something he ever wanted to remember, but something he'd never forget. Had he not been holding Jinx's hand, Wally would've made a fist hard enough to break the skin on his palm with his fingernails. He cursed Robin's heavy handed tactics, if they had been better then none of this would have ever happened, but it all had, and now no one could stop what was going to happen next. The door to Jinx's room slid open and a slim African American teenager walked in, wearing black and red clothes. Wally nodded to him greeting; "Hot Spot."

"Kid Flash" Hot Spot nodded back, he held up his communicator, "I got your message, what's this about?"

"Not yet" Wally told him, hearing more footsteps, these ones belonging to another youth wearing a blue and black costume with shoulder length black hair. "Aqualad."

Aqualad nodded a wordless greeting and moved over to the other side of Jinx's bed, looking down. "How is she?" He asked.

"They'll say she'll make it" Wally told him, "but only because I got her here less than five seconds after she was shot, she was lucky she was with someone with my powers or she'd be dead. The muscle may never heal back properly though."

"So did you call us here?" Aqualad asked.

Wally raised a finger from holding Jinx's hand to quiet him. "Wait."

A minute quaking in the floor a few minutes later told Wally the next person had arrived. He allowed himself a dark grin as he heard a nurse give a shrill squeak as the door was pushed open and the next figure managed to barely squeeze through. "Wildebeest."

"Kid Flash" he grunted. "Heard you had a run-in with Slade."

Wally chose not to answer as an accented female voice drifted down the hall to their ears. "Why does this place have so many bloody rooms? How hard can it be to tell me where the girl with pink hair is? Bloody hell."

The door opened a cracked and in poked the head the next of Wally's contacts. He inclined his head. "Argent."

"Kid Flash" she said, entering and curtsying with her short skirt, Aqualad offered his seat to her which she accepted with a smile. "We haven't had many chances to speak but I'm sorry for what Slade did to Jinx, she's a good girl."

"This wasn't Slade" Wally said suddenly with a surge of anger, quieting all of the other small conversations in the room. "Slade had us under watch if the main Titans tried to contact us but they didn't, they kicked down our door and attacked us. Slade is escalating because they are, they're getting more violent, obsessed, there's another man in this hospital that that new Titan Rune beat within an inch of his life. The Titans are out of control and Slade will continue to match their extreme methods with his own. Slade murdered seven cops to get to Rune but he was saved, Jinx was almost his next victim. Their obsession has led to them nearly abandoning Jump City in order to protect their own interests, the crime rate is skyrocketing. We need to stop the killing and restore order, as Titans ourselves, it's our responsibility."

"By stopping Slade?" Hot Spot asked.

"No" Wally replied darkly. "By stopping the Titans."

"What?" Aqualad asked, shocked.

"You heard me" Wally told him grittily. "The Titans are driving this conflict out of control and Slade is only matching them. We'll never be able to find Slade, if we truly want to save people, stopping the Titans is our only option. You guys are the ones I trust the most and you're also the ones I think have the skill set to go toe-to-toe with them, we need nothing less than the best if we want to do this right."

"You're asking us to fight our friends, people who saved us" Wildebeest grunted.

"Yeah, Wildebeest and I would still be paperweights on the Brain's trophy case if it wasn't for them" Hot Spot agreed.

"Who gave the Brain your locations?" Kid Flash asked. "Who led us all blindly into being targeted by the Brotherhood of Evil?"

"When the Brotherhood of Evil came for me" Argent said slowly, looking down at her feet. "I was fixing a dam. Because of them, I couldn't finish repairing it and it was destroyed easily. Nine people died" she finished quietly.

"None of this would have happened if it weren't for them" Kid Flash insisted. "For every evil they stop they create two more, and now they've created one in themselves."

"So you want us to fight our friends" Aqualad finished.

"Only if we have to" Wally said, "but they need to be stopped by any means necessary."

"When we use that kind of language, we're no better than them, or Slade" Hot Spot told him.

Wally pulled his fingers from Jinx's hands to angrily massage his temples. "Can't you see the threat they pose?" He asked.

"I see the threat you pose" Hot Spot replied evenly.

"No" Wildebeest suddenly grunted, putting a hand on Hot Spot's shoulder. "The Titans fighting Slade has an unpredictable result, it could be anywhere and could be destructive enough to level a city, Jump City. If we fight, we can contain this and fight it on our terms. I don't like it, but he is right."

"I'm in" Aqualad said, leaning against the wall.

Wally looked to Argent, she nodded. "You can count on me."

Four pairs of eyes looked to Hot Spot. He sighed, "I don't like this, but I suppose true heroes don't choose the battles they fight and looking at the city, the Titans made a choice. I'll stand with you, there's just one problem."

"Being?" Kid Flash asked.

"There are five of us" Hot Spot said, gesturing around the room. "I'm just assuming Jinx isn't going to be ready to fight soon. The Teen Titans have six members, we've all heard about the new recruit Rune. We need one more."

"And we need a leader" Kid Flash said, surprising them all. "I may have brought us together but I can't lead this team, I'm a solo act, always have been. I don't have the skills to lead a team. We need a new member, someone who can lead us, someone with the skills to outmatch the Teen Titans."

A knock at the window made them all whirl around. Hanging with one arm up against the window was a figure in black with a red cape. It wasn't the only the thing that was red about him, the two crossed lines on his chest and face also shared a colour. Red X. "You called?" He asked with cheek in his voice.

"He's a wanted criminal" Hot Spot immediately said.

"Not to mention the Titans would love to get their hands on him" Aqualad added, "he's been a thorn in their side they've never been able to pin down."

Wally reacted to this news with curiosity. "Stay alert" he warned the group but slowly opened the window.

Red X slipped in soundlessly and looked at the five apprehensive faces staring at him. "What?" He asked them. He pointed to his face, "it's just a mask" he joked. When no one laughed he sighed. "Look, I owe none of you any favours" he told them, "but I owe the Titans even less and I have experience with them trying to bring me down. You need me and I'm offering to help you."

"He's a criminal" Hotspot repeated stubbornly, "no matter who we're fighting, we don't associate with those kind of people."

"It's attitudes like yours that make this undertaking already doomed" Red X answered.

"Give me a good reason why we should" Wally said, still unsure.

"The Titans tried to bring me down about a month ago" Red X answered truthfully. "I tried to escape but they forced me to turn and fight. I put Beast Boy through the floor and knocked out Starfire and I wasn't even trying to hurt them. The first time we ever met in a fight the entire lot of them couldn't stop me."

"So what makes you need help this time around?" Aqualad asked.

"They're smarter now" Red X replied, "they've learned a lot. I can't take them down alone but I know how to do it. You need to stop them from hurting people and I want them to get out of interfering with my life."

"A life of crime" Hot Spot cut in.

Red X went to reply but Kid Flash beat him to it. "Shut the hell up Hot Spot, no one is making you stay."

"But the Titans do need to be stopped before it's too late" Hot Spot said.

"And I'm the guy you need to do it" Red X finished.

Hot Spot was silent.

"So do we have a deal?" Red X asked.

Wally looked once more around at his team, then at Jinx. She seemed so delicate, so frail, wrapped in the hospital bed. The heavy bandaging set around her shoulder made him grit his teeth in anger, the Titans brought this on them. They were debating whether to get out of the business completely when the Titans kicked in their door and unleashed hell on them. It was time for payback. "We'll follow you" Wally said, lowering his mask. "You're in."

"This is going to be epic" Red X said, the team could almost hear him smiling behind the mask. He jumped back onto the window sill. He threw out a group of discs which each member caught deftly. Each one was black with a red 'X' emblazoned on it. "I'll be in touch."

"Matches my outfit" Argent noted, tucking it onto her belt.

"Because you're a goth" Aqualad said.

"I like her style" Red X defended, "she's cute."

Argent just had time for blush to flood through her pale cheeks before Red X leaned backwards and dropped off the windowsill and into the night, vanishing. Kid Flash looked around at the four other Titans in the room, they had allied themselves with a criminal, against their friends, the Teen Titans. Wally looked at the door and anger flourished at the thought about how none of the Titans had stopped to check in, or even called to check in on her progress. They had been responsible for her being put in here and now they were all going to pay for it. _The Teen Titans are going to regret this _he swore, his fist quivering at super speed in anger.

* * *

Raven had gone through several stages of emotion tonight. At first she had been almost _giddy, _a word she vowed to herself she would never use again, waiting for Rune to meet her at the carnival. She remembered Robin and Starfire had been on the ferris wheel more than once together, part of her wanted to go with Rune because she wanted that kind of connection but another part forbade it because it was the kind of thing that couples like Robin and Starfire did and that was definitely not her, nor were her and Rune a couple. _I wouldn't have thought I was the kind of person to go on dates either _she noted. After a small amount of waiting, happiness morphed into nervousness; when was Rune coming? Was he coming? Had he forgotten her? Or was it just bad traffic? He couldn't fly like her so she had no idea about the congestion of Jump City, yes that was probably it. Nearly an hour passed before nervousness shifted into worry, where was he? He would've told her if he was going to be this late. Did he not really care about her? Was this some giant prank that the entire team was laughing at her about from the lounge of Titans Tower? The hour passed accompanied by another thirty minutes when she finally sat down at a bench with her head in hands, sadness taking grip. He wasn't coming. For whatever reason, he wasn't coming, she obviously didn't mean enough to him to even turn up on the dates they made. Why had she been such an idiot? Why had she believed that someone could genuinely care for her? She been a huge part of the event that had led to Rune's torture, it wasn't totally out of reason to theorise that he could've blamed her for Rose's death. Was that it? Was this just a plot to bring her down so she could feel his pain? To know what it was like to have something special then have it torn from you? "You win" Raven muttered dejectedly, feeling totally humiliated. She wiped away a tear from her eye as she stood, Rune had played her for a fool and she had been an idiot the entire time, he had made her feel like something more than she was; totally worthless. She left, feeling her eyes water further as she left. Rounding the corner, she looked down to see a small bouquet of Gerberas lying discarded on the ground, some of the flowers had been violently torn out and lay on the cold cement pavement alone, separated from the bunch. The violet paper they were wrapped in was now stained and soggy from the puddle it had fallen in. Raven thought about picking them up before the first touch of anger crept in and she marched off, her boot crushing the flowers underfoot.


	17. Girl Troubles

_90 Minutes Earlier. _

"Rose?" Rune asked, his expression falling slack.

The brunette twisted her head to the side little, letting a lock of hair fall between the contact of their eyes. "Hey stranger."

"But you're…" Rune trailed off, unable to believe his eyes. Three different identities clashed in his mind fighting over how to deal with this. "You're…"

"Dead?" She ventured. "Not quite."

Rune felt his heart pounding in his chest. "No, no, no" he muttered, his head falling into his hands. "This isn't the time for jokes, I felt your heart stop, I held you in my arms while they took you away, you can't be alive, you can't be here." His shoulders started heaving, his legs felt weak and no amount of oxygen seemed to be staving it off. His mouth went dry, every memory between her death and now simultaneously replayed in his head, everything he put himself through for killing her, and now here she was standing in front of him. Rune felt so much; happiness, joy, disbelief, suspicion, uncertainty, regret, it was all colliding inside his chest at once. All else was forgotten as she studied him. She stepped in closer to him and ran a hand down his face. "You're not real" Rune whispered to her.

She smiled back at him, she had approached so easily and now her lips were centimetres from his, he could feel the electricity between them. "I was always so much stronger than you gave me credit for." She told him with an effortless smile decorating her flawlessly white teeth. "Come with me."

"Just like that?" Rune asked almost disbelievingly. "I can't leave, I have a life here, I have friends here, I can't leave chasing a dream. I…" His voice trailed off as he sheepishly held up the flowers, "I have a date."

"You've let me go?" Rose asked, her voice quieting. She took a step back from him, the moment darkened.

"No" Rune shook his head. "Never, but… but I can't stay in the past."

Rose turned and stormed away. Rune reached out to stop her but she whirled and tried to strike at him. Rune leaned back out of harm's way but her outstretched fingers caught the bouquet and tore it out of his grip, knocking the scattered bunch to the ground. "He was right about you" she told him scathingly.

"Who was right about me?" Rune asked quickly in reply. "Who have you been talking to? How did you find me?"

"You've missed me for years" she said, walking away. She threw one leg over a motorbike. "Now you want me gone as soon as I came back."

Rune stepped forward, reaching. "No Rose, it's not like that, I…" Rose gunned the throttle, taking off. Rune looked back to the corner he knew Raven was waiting around. He looked back, the taillight of Rose's bike was rapidly shrinking with distance. "Fuck" he cursed, running for his own bike. Stamping down, the bike roared into life and Rune whipped it around, causing two cars to swerve and crash into each other. "Forgive me Raven" he whispered as he twisted the throttle and the wind rushed over his face as he flew after Rose's bike. She was good, not paying attention to any speed limits as she whipped through the slim streets between cars, slipping perfectly between the gaps. Robin's bike was wider and less nimble, occasionally clipping the wing mirrors of cars that flew off with small sparks as Rune flew after her, focus set into his features. Rose had to be nuts, driving at these speeds was near suicidal. How was she alive though? The thought consumed him as he kept his eyes narrowed on the road, the wind whipped at his hair. She had died, Rune knew it, he had been there, he wouldn't have left, no matter the consequences if there had been a chance that she was alive. He unconsciously checked a rune on his left hand, he had always assumed it had been to kill after Rose. What if he had been wrong? What if he had abandoned Rose to something or someone out of fear for himself? _No _he told himself, there was something more to this, he would have answers and he would stop until he had them. The thought drove all the cares and hesitations from his mind as he pulled the throttle back further, just a touch now could send the bike spinning out of control, and without the helmet Rune had neglected in his haste, any sort of accident at this speed would certainly be fatal. The red of traffic lights and the yellow of cabs become blurred amongst a symphony of cars honking their horns as the pair flew through the streets. Rune was almost catching up, the tail of her jacket was flicking in the wind. Rune stretched forward and reached, there was only a few inches between her and his fingertips, just to touch her again… Suddenly Rose swung a right turn and Rune flew past, unprepared and momentarily losing his focus. He cursed as he slowed quickly before taking the next turn, quickly pushing the speedometer back into the red limits. Rune dared to make split second checks to his right every block between trying not to crash into anyone. There she was, only one street over, they were neck and neck. Rune kept looking over at Rose every gap but she only had eyes for what was lying in front her and the horizon. Rune took a second too long to look and gasped as a semi pulled out in front of him. Instinct took over as he twisted the bike and began to skid, the bike grinding against the grind as Rune leant back to avoid being decapitated by the trailer. Rune quickly slid underneath the trailer unscathed but the world was rushing by too quickly for him to be amazed by the move. The bike was still skidding out of control towards the next intersection . Rune quickly looked at the bike's display and pressed a button with his thumb. A blast from the right side of the bike suddenly pushed it upright, Rune almost didn't manage to pull it straight before it rolled straight over. Rune deactivated the stabilisation booster and quickly leant to the right to avoid taking out a woman and a dog crossing the street. He had lost critical time though, Rose had already pulled ahead, if she turned away from Rune he'd never know. Rune pulled into Rose's street just in time to see her take an alley off the right side of the road, her pace still breakneck. The thousands of questions in Rune's mind went unanswered and ignored as he kept after her, he couldn't let her go, how she was alive and capable of this could wait until he had caught her. Rune pulled into the alleyway to see it empty, she must've already pulled out of the other end. Rune pushed down on the throttle but hesitated as suddenly the T-Car pulled up at the other end and stopped. Robin stepped out of the passenger seat and held up a remote, pressing down on one of the buttons. Unbidden, the bike's wheels suddenly locked and began squealing as the brakes clamped down on the thick wheels. Rune managed to hold on for a few seconds but was thrown over the front of the handlebars. Rune yelled as he hit the ground and bounced, the back of his shirt tore open and he felt a rib crack on the next bounce. Robin nimbly stepped out of the way as Rune bounced past and hit the windscreen of the T-Car, the strengthened windows holding firm as Rune groaned. Robin reached over and yanked Rune off the car.

"What the hell were you doing?" He growled.

Rune was struggling for breath and his body was burning with pain but he broke Robin's grip, running beyond the car to look left, then right. Rose and the bike were gone.

"I asked you a question" Robin said, his voicing rising in annoyance at being ignored.

"Did you see a bike come out of here?" Rune questioned wildly. "Was a dark purple colour, female rider pushing it fast, faster than me."

"There was no one" Robin said, "what kind of game were you playing? Were you street racing?"

Rune took a deep breath then yelled in anger. "Fuck!" He screamed, he didn't punch the hood of the T-Car but the urge to was near irresistible. Rose had vanished, all his answers were gone with her, all the new questions she had left behind were now screaming around his head. "How did you find me?" He demanded, whipping his head toward Robin.

Robin held up a remote, "the R-Cycle sent me an automated message when you pushed it past the hundred-mile-an-hour mark, you took it to a hundred and thirty seven. As if the host of nine-one-one calls you inspired weren't breadcrumbs enough."

"Well I didn't have a choice" Rune defended, "I wasn't about to let her go. Now thanks to you I lost her."

"Who is her?" Robin asked, his patience shortening.

"Nobody" Rune snarled, feeling his concoction of emotions bubbling. "If there's nothing here, we might as well go home."

"You ride in the back seat" Robin told him, sticking a thumb backwards. "I'm taking the bike."

Rune complied without speaking another word, feeling almost burnt out, how was this possible? If it was possible, if Rose was truly alive, why would she have come after him? The clouds darkened over the trip and soon enough, the raindrops began hitting the windows as Rune looked out over the dark bay. His fists had been clenched ever since his pursuit had been aborted, the bones and muscles in his fingers almost ached but he gave them no respite. Rune didn't once make eye contact with Cyborg, not during the trip nor when they arrived back home, he just got out and made a beeline for his room, all his thoughts consumed by Rose and his failure to catch her.

The strained atmosphere was not improved when Raven returned back to Titan's Tower, she counted it a blessing when no one asked where she had been. After making sure no one was trailing her, she made for the room of the guy who had stood her up. She stood in front of his closed door for a moment before extending a hand. "Rune!" She called, using her powers to throw open his door. His room lay empty. Confused for a moment, she returned to the lounge where there were only four other Titans. Raven held her silence as Beast Boy sat lazily on the couch, channel surfing. Raven watched as he found some robot wrestling show and started to get even more comfortable before the screen faded out into static before coming back into clarity again. "Stupid TV" Beast complained, throwing the remote away.

"Must be the weather" Robin said absent-mindedly from where he was reading a newspaper. Raven looked out the window, sure it was raining but they had gone through lightning storms before without Beast Boy's life source of broadcasted idiocy being so heinously interrupted. She felt a hunch and turned, making her way back out of the room again.

The rain dripped off the tips of his fringe and nose as Rune battered away, his breath steam in the air as he threw punch after punch on the rooftop of Titan's Tower. He had been swinging for nearly an hour now, purely driven by his emotions and despite all his exertion, barely felt the strain. A banging sound forced him to stop as he whipped his head around to face the source of the noise. Raven stood in the open doorway, a silhouette with the light behind her but instantly recognisable to Rune. Rune took three strained breaths, just watching Raven. She made no move and neither did he. "Hey" he finally breathed, rather lamely.

"Hey?" Raven asked, taking a step forward as she conjured a black circle above her that shielded her from the rain. "That's all you have to say?"

"Sorry" Rune added. "How'd you know I was up here?"

Raven gestured to the punching bag that was hanging from the prongs of the TV dish that Rune had been punishing with his bare and bruised fists. "You're ruining robot wrestling for Beast Boy."

"He'll get over it" Rune said, stepping away from the punching bag, he walked towards the edge of the tower, not caring about the rain; he was far past the point of being soaked. He looked out over the bay, the rain was so heavy Jump City couldn't be seen.

"So was there a reason you left me standing at the carnival today?" Raven asked, trying to keep the venom out of her voice.

"I saw her Raven" Rune said, not looking away from the rain in front of him. "It was her."

"Rose?" Raven asked, the only name she knew that could've had this kind of effect on him.

Rune nodded. "She talked to me, she touched me… then she vanished again. I was this close."

"Rose is dead" Raven told him, not unkindly. She was only standing a few feet from him. "You said so, you know so."

Rune shook his head, "I thought so, but the rune that went off, it can't have been something that kills, just puts them into a deep sleep or a kind of stasis maybe," he was starting to talk wildly.

"Rune" Raven said, stopping him. "Slade used a chemical on Robin once, it made him susceptible to hallucinations and delirious, he believed Slade was still alive so in his mind Slade was still there, Robin almost died from it, it was so real to him, he threatened us when we tried to fracture the illusion."

"What are you saying?" Rune asked in a low voice.

Raven hesitated, "you were out in the open, how many people could you have bumped into? Slade could have been any one of them with the toxin, to make you see the person you wanted to see the most." She reached out to him.

Rune spun round, his face twisted in rage. "I saw her!" He yelled, making Raven flinch backwards. Seeing her reaction, he immediately softened. "I'm sorry" he muttered ashamedly, "I stood you up today and now I'm yelling at you about something that's not even close to your fault. I just.." He struggled to find the words. "I need to know for sure, I know she can't be alive but I know she was real today, I just know it. Rose is alive, and out there somewhere in the city, I have to find her."

"We will" Raven said, stepping forward and putting her hands on the rail to look out with Rune. She widened the disc to shelter him from the rain. "Together."

"Why would you do this for me?" Rune asked. "It's not that I'm ungrateful but…"

"If we know she's alive, chances are Slade has known for a while" Raven answered, "knowing how much she means to you means he might go after her to get to you. Try and organise a trade with us, our last gem for Rose, it's for her safety."

Rune nodded, Raven was always quicker to grasp the logic than he was. "Thank you."

"Well I can't say no if she meant enough for you to stand me up on a date" Raven replied icily.

Rune stiffened, then his face wrinkled in a grimace. "I'm sorry Raven, I truly am. It's not everyday I see a ghost. But I just wanted answers, only answers from her."

"What do you mean?"

"She asked me to leave with her" Rune said, finally breaking his eyes away from the rain to look into Raven's eyes and she met his gaze cautiously. "She asked to leave everything behind to be with her and I thought of everything I had here. A home, friends, you."

Raven thought back. "The flowers… you bought Gerberas for me didn't you?"

Rune nodded, "she swiped them out of my hand in anger. Because I had a date I was unwilling to leave, I couldn't leave you behind, not even if I wanted to." He put his hand on top of hers wrapped around the rail. "I wasn't there for you today" he said in a low voice, looking back out, "but know my feelings for her don't surpass anything I feel for you."

Raven rolled her eyes under the cloak, despite her heart tugging at her to speak her mind. "We don't even know what we feel for each other, we've been through this so many times already. We get close, one of us panics and ends it but then we roll right back around to square one again."

"I know enough" Rune argued. "I know that I care for you, and that I think you care for me." He took a breath before continuing, remembering what Cyborg had told him when the two had worked on the T-Car together. "I know we both know there are risks, our powers have that degree of unpredictability, of instability, but I don't care and I'd run the risk of being hurt for you. But only if you told me the threat from my powers meant nothing to you either."

He fully turned to Raven now, and she took his hands in hers. She looked at the bruises that made a patchwork over his fingers and her hands shimmered as she called on her powers to ease the pain she knew was obviously throbbing through them, despite the fact that Rune would have always denied it.

Raven looked up from her work to see Rune's eyes looking into her own and again felt her heart clench, why couldn't she let this go? She had said the words before to end it but her heart had never agreed and had only again been drawn back into this game she played with him.

"Only if you tell me" Rune whispered, his voice barely audible over the sound of the rain.

Raven swallowed the lump in her throat, she found herself unconsciously drawing closer to Rune.

"Tell me" he breathed.

Raven's hands in his started to tremble, his lips were within reach of hers if she wanted to breach the gap. But did she? Did she want to start this? She knew this was a new point, further than the time she had kissed him impulsively before, this was purposeful, this was intentional, there was a deeper meaning behind this choice. There would be no taking this choice back. Did she want to run this risk? Was Rune worth it all to her?

"Do you want to try this?" Rune murmured.

Raven's gaze had dipped but she raised it to meet his. "Yes" she whispered in return, and finally she felt the knot inside her chest unwind. Rune leaned in close to kiss her, his eyes near closed when Raven retracted the cover of her disc, giving him a cold shower in the rain. "No. You stood me up today" she told him in a factual voice, "I still get to be mad about that." Rune let his shoulders drop from the shock of the cold before he grinned and wrapped Raven in his arms, making her shriek from his cold and wet embrace and making him only laugh and hold her tighter. "I'm even madder now" she told him flatly after he let her go. He only laughed and suddenly Raven found herself smiling with reddened cheeks. "Stop making me happy" she complained, "I don't do happy."

"So I guess we'll start tomorrow?" Rune asked with a smile that even the pouring rain couldn't dampen.

Raven turned away from Rune and pulled her cowl fully over her face in an attempt to restrain the smile that was seemingly contagious between them. She failed. "Maybe" she said, "maybe I'll still be mad." She started walking back for the door to go back downstairs and heard Rune's footsteps trailing her. "Uh uh" she said, pointing at the punching bag. "You go have another twenty minute session with your friend over there and then take him off the TV dish before Beast Boy starts showing withdrawal symptoms."

Rune ran a hand through his hair guiltily. "Right. Guess I'll, uh, see you tomorrow?"

"Guess you will" Raven said, her flat tone breaking at the end just to show a hint at her true emotion. She walked away, her fists clenched tight around her cloak to stop them shaking or fidgeting. Rune shook the droplets out of his hair and pressed his fists against the bag before taking his first swing and hearing the satisfying thud as the bag jerked on the chain from the impact, while a floor below Beast Boy yelled as the TV burst into a second of static and he missed the Wrestle-mator 900 performing a moonsault from the top rope onto an unfortunate superstar. "Rune?" Raven said, just before she left the roof.

Rune turned to look at her.

"We will find her" Raven promised.

Rune gave a small smile, happy for Raven's help and compassion but also fearful and apprehensive of the answers that finding Rose would bring. "Thank you."

Raven nodded, then left as Rune hammered the bag with another fist. He hit for another twenty minutes, then twenty more before finally reaching up and disconnecting the bag from the dish, letting it hit the ground with a thud. He twisted his neck and grunted as he felt his vertebrae click. He left it where it lay as he looked over towards where the city lay hidden in the mist. _I will find you _he promised, before turning and walking back into the shelter of the tower. Drying himself down, he found the lounge empty and the lights dimmed; the team had already retired for the night, it was later than he thought. Rune made his way towards his room, taking care to keep his tread soft and silent. "Rune?" He heard a voice behind him say.

Rune cursed himself as he turned around to see Raven, her hood down. "Sorry, did I wake you?"

Raven shook her head, "I needed a nightcap before sleeping, what's your excuse?"

"I just got back inside" Rune told her. Raven's eyes didn't betray anything as he walked with her back to her room, it was on his way anyway. She opened her door and Rune stood awkwardly around, unsure whether she was going to say anything or if she was going to simply stride through and ignore him. That was probably more likely. Raven took a few steps inside then suddenly stopped in the stripe of moonlight piercing between her curtains. "Raven?" Rune asked, unsure if he was expected to leave or stay or do something.

"I said tomorrow" Raven replied, as if to shut down any thoughts of his about them taking the moment.

Rune nodded, taking his step back and turning away.

"Rune?"

The teen turned around to see Raven pointing at a clock. "I said tomorrow," the clock read 12:01, "it's tomorrow now."

Rune took a cautious step forward, Raven kept her back to him. He couldn't see her or read her emotions, his heart was pounding with every movement. He reached out and touched her arm. When she didn't move, Rune took another step and put his other hand on her other arm, holding her gently above the elbow, resting his hands on her warmth. She turned her head to look down at one of his hands and Rune kissed the exposed side of her neck, Raven breathed in sharply as her head fell back. Rune savoured every kiss he was allowed to plant on her her soft, smooth skin, pressing them from her collarbone to just under her sharp jawline. She leaned back against his chest as one of his hands slipped down and his fingers laced between hers, she squeezed them tightly as she pressed them hard against her thigh. Her breath became slowly louder and quicker as she gave in to Rune. She pressed herself off his leg to turn herself around as she looked up at Rune. He stroked his thumb from the edge of her eye down her cheek, brushing her hair that framed her face. He smiled.

"What?" Raven asked.

Rune's smile didn't dim. "You're so gorgeous in the moonlight."

Raven blushed as she felt a happiness beyond compare bloom in the centre of her chest and she pulled his lips down and kissed him. Rune held her tightly against him but she pulled her lips away and looked him seriously in the eyes. "Can we keep this between us?" She asked him. "Just for now, with everything going on, I don't want to create another talking point just yet."

"Secret romance" Rune smiled, "got it."

Raven rolled her eyes, "shut up."

"Make me" Rune challenged, making Raven kiss him again, surprising even herself at her own impulsiveness that Rune seemed to bring out in her. This fire between them was dangerous, but she found herself liking it. She eventually broke away and pushed one of her fingers to his lips.

"It's late" she told him, "you should get to bed."

Raven half expected him to press her further, to make some half-assed joke about spending the night in her bed but he nodded and smiled understandingly. Raven found a peace and a comfort in that, she had forgotten how different he was from Beast Boy, and how much she liked that. "Goodnight" he said quietly as he walked out backwards, never letting his eyes leave her.

"Goodnight" she returned, then the door closed.

Rune took a moment to breathe before walking away, letting a smile linger freely on his lips. Walking away filled to the brim with happiness, he didn't notice a thing as he passed the fly on the wall that had just flown out of Raven's room. The fly that had just witnessed their moment together. The fly, that neither Raven nor Rune had noticed, that was completely a bright green colour.


	18. Competition

Rune woke early the next morning and despite the fact it was due to Robin sending out a message to everyone that they were going to train in ten minutes, he still had a smile on his face. They all dragged themselves out of bed and met in the training room below. Rune shared a small smile with Raven entering, Beast Boy had a scowl but that the norm for any morning Beast Boy had to get out of bed before nine. Robin was waiting for them all as he explained the drill. "It's simple" he told them, "every one of us has to get through a course specifically to challenge our own set of powers before reaching the middle where there's a ball. First one to get the ball wins. Any questions?"

Rune traded sideways glances with Raven and Cyborg. The latter told him the game was on. The former told him it was going to be hard not to be distracted.

Robin looked around at the silent but eager faces of his team. "Then let's do this."

Rune walked around with the others before finding his place; a circle with a black 'R', the red and indigo ones belonging to Robin and Raven. Robin took his place and nodded at Cyborg on the blue 'C'. who entered a command into his wrist console. Rune whirled around as grey steel walls slid out of the floor around him, rapidly rising to the ceiling. They touched the roof with a soft rumble, leaving Rune's only course to go straight forward.

"Okay gang," Robin's voice buzzed in his ear, "may the best Titan win."

Rune looked around and allowed himself a moment to be impressed by the obvious effort that had gone into crafting this when he heard a boom and realised he didn't have the time to waste; the other Titans were already engaging their challenges. Rune broke out into a sprint as he rounded the first wall to be confronted by a few training bots, nothing that couldn't be handled. Rune attacked surgically, punching through the softer panels, breaking limbs at the joints, blinding the eyes as he jumped from target to target, systematically dismantling the robots whilst dodging their stunning blasts. The last Rune dispatched with flair, giving it a violent twist and prying the entire head loose of its casings. Rune heard Cyborg call out a "Boo yah!" from his own corridor, clearly they were all making progress. Rune sprinted down the stretch, vaulting over or rolling under the various panels that popped out to slow him down. There were the sound of a barrage of star bolts filled the air next, Robin's yell was even louder than that. This was going to be close.

Rune found his next major obstacle around the next corridor, a pool of water. Rune grinned as he dived in, then that grin vanished as he began to be sucked downward. Rune fought the current as hard as he could, angrily aware that this was wasting his time and his strength. Rune was pushed against the wall where he managed to grab a hold of the bar that ran around the edge. Pulling himself back to where he began, he surveyed the pool this time and cursed himself; he hadn't spotted the duct at the bottom of the pool in his haste. He needed another way around. _Or over._ Rune's eyes turned a light blue as he knelt and touched his palm to the surface of the water, minute ripples running from the contact. Rune willed and a patch of ice spread from his hand, following the ripple. Rune watched it reach the sides and run around the edge until the entire pool's surface had frozen over. Rune stood and put out a foot experimentally to test the ice; it held him without a complaint. Rune grinned and started to cross when a change in colour caught his attention. The pool was turning red. Rune's eyes narrowed when a sound made his insides drop; the ice was cracking. The pool was heating up. Rune began to run, each of his light but frantic footsteps producing a spiderweb of fissures as the ice weakened. An eruption of screams from metal grinding on metal above made Rune look up as the ceiling suddenly began to fall towards him. Rune's eyes flashed from blue to brown as he thrusted his hands up to halt it, calling on his runes to lend to his strength. Rune grunted as the ceiling pushed him lower, the ice began fracturing madly below, water erupted through the cracks in frenzied bursts. Rune looked down and gave a yell as a squirt touched his forearm and turned the skin red on contact. It was scalding hot. He had no doubt that there were failsafes to keep this from being fatal but even then, Robin and Cyborg hadn't gone any extra miles to be nice either. Another crack of ice brought him back to the moment as another squirt landed along the back of his leg, making Rune grit his teeth. He had to do something now or he would be taking a painfully hot bath. If Rune stayed the way he was, the ceiling would hold but the ice floor he had created would not, and Rune would be pushed down into the water. Conversely, if Rune moved back to freezing the ice, the ceiling would crush him against it, something that probably wouldn't win him any points. Rune cursed Robin's tenacity, why did they have to attempt the insane drills at this time of morning? Rune looked down and took a sharp breath as the slab of ice he was standing on was pushed just below the surface, causing water to rush over and lick at the bottom of his shoes, he had to act and he had to act now. Rune breathed in and opened his eyes again, this time one iris was brown but the other opened as blue. He took one hand from the roof and touched it to the ice, cooling and freezing the water as the fissures sealed themselves back up again.

Rune was lost in awe at his actions, he'd never managed to use two runes at the same time before. In quick succession, easily but never simultaneously, it was exhilarating. The ceiling held its distance from Rune whilst the ice solidified and strengthened beneath his boots. Rune was so enthralled he almost missed how much of a strain the effort was taking on him. Rune took a deep breath and then realised while he was holding everything still, he wasn't getting any closer to the other edge and the runes were quickly sapping his strength. Rune scanned his surroundings but couldn't find a thing available for him to use, the only thing he had was himself. He didn't have time to plan, it was time to act. This was a training exercise but Rune didn't doubt the reality of the danger he was in. Rune brought his right arm with a brown rune on it closer in, the ceiling closed another inch. Rune took one more deep breath, feeling the oxygen flood through his lungs, the focus reverberating throughout his body, there was only the moment. Rune yelled as he gave the ceiling a violent shove, throwing it back up about two metres. The ice exploded around his hand braced against it, cracks exploded to all corners of the sheet. Rune pushed off and ran, the ceiling came hurtling down, the ice convulsed as the heat devoured it with burning teeth. Rune jumped from piece to piece as they thrashed in the frothy water. Rune lowered his head and threw himself forward as the roof came down, the sound of the ice being shattered erupted from behind him as he rolled onto the floor and took a second to catch his breath. He had made it across. He wondered how everyone else was doing and whether their challenges were pushing them as hard. Rune rolled onto his front and pushed himself back to his feet again, ignoring the exertion resisting his every move, he could rest when training was over. Rune jogged down the halls, the urgency was gone from his steps, he couldn't push himself into his desperate sprint. Rune rounded the next corner and saw the sight that made him grin. At the end of the corridor the walls widened into a hexagonal room, fed into by six passages and the middle, sitting unclaimed, was a bright pink ball. Rune almost laughed, he had been scalded, almost drowned, crushed and he was winning? He knew Robin wouldn't have allowed any mortal danger in his exercises and that there would have been safety measures in place but if Rune had gone through his own trial and come out first, he wondered how diabolical the challenges in place for the others were. Rune covered the distance and with a grin, he stopped in front of the ball. He had won. Rune was wondering who was going to be the first Titan he'd have to disappoint as he extended a hand but that thought was interrupted as something slammed into him from behind and threw him across the room. Rune spluttered a cough as his winded lungs suddenly became desperate for air. He shook his head to disperse the blur to see a green bull morph back into a human form.

"Keep your hands off what isn't yours" Beast Boy told him harshly.

Rune got back to his feet, one hand holding his ribs. "What the fuck was that?" He demanded, voice rising in anger.

"What you get when you try to take things from us" Beast Boy answered, his eyes were narrowed in anger, his fang protruded from his mouth. "We'll fight to keep them from being stolen."

"What the hell are you talking about?" Rune asked, beginning to walk back towards Beast Boy.

Beast Boy's muscles visibly clenched. "You and Raven" he spat, "what's your deal?"

Rune hesitated. Raven had wanted to keep it a secret. "I don't know what you're talking about" he replied coolly. He was getting close now.

Beast Boy's eye twitched as his body started to shake. "Don't you lie to me!" He yelled, striking at Rune. Rune was prepared for it though and stepped nimbly underneath. As Beast Boy passed over him, Rune felt a twinge of annoyance and consciously extended and swept his foot, kicking out Beast Boy's ankles. Beast Boy hit the ground hard as Rune finished the turn, his muscles tensed, ready to react. Beast Boy sprang back to his feet and the two stood locked rigidly in their stances, eyeing the other, daring each other to make a move.

"I saw you kiss her" Beast Boy spat.

Rune's eyes betrayed no surprise as he sized up Beast Boy, looking for a weakness he could exploit but he had been well trained, there were no obvious flaws in his defence.

"Admit it" Beast Boy growled.

Rune cocked his head, "What is this really about Beast Boy? Is this because you're afraid for Raven becoming attached to me because of what happened between you and Terra and you don't want that to happen all over again?"

Beast Boy was struck with an anger, burning white hot as Rune's words cut deep. He shook, barely able to keep his feet rooted to his spot on the floor. Rune didn't know why these words were pouring out of his mouth but he just let them flow, he couldn't stop now, he had committed and if Raven was right then this fight was unavoidable anyway. It was time to cut to the root of the issue, to finish this.

"Or is this because you simply have feelings for Raven yourself?" Rune probed, his eyes piercing into his teammate.

"That's none of your business" Beast Boy snarled.

"You're afraid to tell her so you feel that if you drive every other major male figure out of her life then she'll have no choice but to be with you, is that it?"

"Shut up!" Beast Boy yelled, leaping at Rune and shifting into a tiger in midair. Rune grabbed the tiger by the head and swung it around, throwing it away but yelled as a paw caught on his shoulder, the claws leaving gouge marks. Rune yelled and grabbed his shoulder as he looked down then back up again. Beast Boy landed in his agile form and sprang off the ground again, intent on giving Rune as little time as possible to recover. Rune dropped his hand from his shoulder to hit Beast Boy solidly in the face with a forearm but the weight of the tiger was still enough to knock him down again. Rune hit the ground and looked up to see two green gorilla fists swinging down. Rune rolled out of the way but coming back to his feet, Beast Boy hit him with a backhanded swipe to the chest and Rune flew back, slamming against the wall. Rune looked up as he grunted in pain getting back up. Beast Boy didn't make a noise as his hairy shoulders rose and fell, two fangs protruding from his mouth.

"Fuck this," Rune muttered, "no more Mr Nice Guy." He charged, Beast Boy roared before mirroring the action, his every step making thunderous noises. Rune waited until the last second before dropping to his knees and sliding between Beast Boy's legs. Beast Boy turned around, this time Rune dodged the backhanded swipe and replied with an uppercut to the jaw, Beast Boy's head snapping back as saliva flew from his lips. Rune thought that maybe the one solid hit would have been enough to bring Beast Boy back to his senses, he was wrong. Beast Boy roared even louder and brought his hands down like a hammer. Rune dodged back, Beast Boy's size meant it was near impossible to take an opportunity to get a shot in without opening himself for Beast Boy to strike a massive counterblow. Rune stepped back, weaving in and out of the blows whilst constantly giving ground. Beast Boy raised himself above Rune and then shrank. On instinct, Rune snatched out and caught the cobra that had thrown itself at him inches before it had reached his chest. Rune threw the snake back but caught it by the tail and with a sinister expression, slammed it into the wall like a rope. He went to do it again but when he swung the tail wouldn't come. Rune looked back where to Beast Boy had become considerably bigger. Like dinosaur big. Beast Boy roared and flicked his tail, this time Rune was the one thrown. Rune landed heavily but regained his feet quickly, he could feel the bruises starting to form on his back and torso. Beast Boy turned to a lion and roared but he was drowned out by Rune's reply for all the rage that was flowing through him. This battle had long since shifted beyond besting the other, it was now about beating the other into submission. The pair charged, Rune's fists were clenched, Beast Boy's fangs were bared. Beast Boy leapt but Rune slammed his fist into the lion's jaws, fracturing a tooth. Beast Boy's weight from the charge slammed into Rune and the pair rolled, Rune's punches traded for swipes from Beast Boy's paws. The two regained their feet and Beast Boy rose up on his hind legs, drowning Rune in shadow. Rune hit him in the ribs but screamed as Beast Boy clamped down his jaws around Rune's elbow. Rune dropped to his knees as Beast Boy tightened his grip, the pain was intense. Rune gritted his teeth, he would not lose, he had a right to fight, Beast Boy would not tell him who he was allowed to love, he had the feeling, that was as much right as anyone else. Rune yelled as he clenched his fist and a rune went off inside Beast Boy's mouth, giving him a jolt to his senses as he was thrown back. Beast Boy shifted back to human to shake his head, this was Rune's chance. Rune pushed himself back up, though with not nearly as much power as he would've liked, the fight had near drained him. He had to finish this, now, one hesitation and it would be up to Beast Boy to decide the fate of the fight. Rune flew towards Beast Boy, fist raised when the sound of something flying through the air reached his ears. Rune's body locked shut as his limbs snapped to his body and he fell over, writhing as his body was suddenly restrained by a length of cable that had wrapped his arms and legs. Beast Boy was as surprised as Rune but seized the moment, running for Rune's bound form, showing just as much mercy as he had been given. He threw himself at Rune with his boot drawn back to kick but before he could, there was a flash of light as suddenly Beast Boy was encased in ice.

"That's enough!" Robin shouted, having thrown the rope that had bound Rune. Cyborg was at his shoulder, the cryo-cannon smoking. Robin picked up the ball and in his shaking grip it burst. He threw the torn remains to the side as he strode over. "I don't know what the fuck you two have going on but we are a team! We work together!" Starfire and Raven had joined the fray by this point and looked in shock at the two bloodied, bruised and restrained bodies. Robin continued regardless. "Wherever we came from is irrelevant, we are here now, and we have far greater enemies than just our own petty squabbles. How are we supposed to stop Slade and Red X if we can't rely on each other not to break out in battles amongst each other!?"

Neither Beast Boy nor Rune replied.

"Get yourself cleaned up" Robin growled. "After lunch you will both have extra training sessions, the rest of the team can have the day off. Now get out of my sight."

Starfire used a soft beam to cut the ice away from Beast Boy as Rune wriggled free of the rope and Raven approached him. "You're going to need help with that" she told him, nodding at the punctures in Rune's arm that was made from Beast Boy's teeth. Rune looked down, his arm was bleeding pretty heavily and after the fight he wasn't sure if he still had the strength to heal himself with his runes alone. He nodded his consent to Raven and she disappeared into her ethereal raven, it's wings flooding around to take him into its embrace before flying up and away as Starfire led Beast Boy away. Robin looked at the bloodstains on the floor and the broken panels in disgust before he too left, Cyborg at his flank.

* * *

Rune watched as Raven's palms shimmered with black energy as she closed them around his elbow, helping him with his healing. He was sitting on her bed as she constantly muttered curses under her breath. Whether it was about Rune or Beast Boy, he didn't know, but he figured it was a pretty safe wager to say both. Rune looked away from his left elbow to his right shoulder where the claw marks were sealing up, replaced by a series of eerie white lines. With the lack of strength, it seemed the runes were reducing the wounds to scars rather than healing them flawlessly. He winced as she pressed something cold to his ribs unexpectedly. "I knew it" she muttered, calling on her powers again as she replaced the pack with her healing hands. "Witless fucking imbecile" he heard her add quietly. That one was probably directed at him, Rune figured. After a few more minutes, she stood up from him. "We're done" she told him, "you can put your shirt back on."

Rune looked at the shirt he had worn, it was littered with holes and gashes. "Maybe not."

He stood and stretched, his back clicking. Raven turned around from where she had been standing in the middle of the room. She started with a level tone but didn't manage to keep it for the whole sentence. "Mind telling me what the fuck that was about?!" She shouted.

"He knows about us" Rune defended, "he told me he saw it. After he hit me from behind. And I'm supposed to take that lying down while he says to back off from you? No," he told her, shaking his head, "I refuse."

"So you thought having a full-blown fight in our tower with everyone around would settle things down?!" She demanded, "how fucking dumb could you have gotten!? Now everyone in this tower is going to ask questions and Beast Boy doesn't have any reason to hold back his answers. I said I wanted this to start quietly and less than seven hours later you get into a fight with the one person you knew wouldn't react logically. You baited him, what the hell were you thinking, bringing up Terra?"

"How did you know about that?" Rune asked.

Raven rolled her eyes. "Because I won that exercise, not you. I used an incantation to render myself invisible to get through one of Robin's more insane challenges involving a camera to track my movements. You happened to turn up before it wore off, I saw everything."

Rune hung his head in shame. "Yeah, I'm definitely not without blame in this, but don't think this is all on me either."

"I liked you because I thought you were better" Raven told him softly, cupping his face and lifting it to look at her. "Please don't prove me wrong."

He met her gaze. "Never again" he promised, then pulled her into his hug. She closed her eyes fiercely shut as he pressed her head into his chest. Her hand passed over his shoulder and she shivered a little at the unnatural smoothness of the scar tissue newly formed from the claw marks. "I'm fine" he whispered in her ear.

"Just don't do anything like that again. We see too much pain already" she replied just as quietly, "and our home is struggling to stay a sanctuary as it is. Don't bring the pain within these walls."

"These walls contain their fair share of pain too" Rune told her, the image of Raven tied to the wall flashed through his mind, her blood… it still seemed so recent.

She noticed the change in expression flash across his face and looked down. "Yeah" she muttered, "I guess home isn't exactly the safest place either anymore. We need to value what excuse for silence we have left."

"Well after this morning with Beast Boy, I'm not sure how many more quiet days we'll have." Rune sighed, fully aware of his idiocy. "Where do you find the quiet, that inner peace of yours?"

Raven shrugged, she still wasn't used to talking openly about herself nor was she particularly good at these kind of conversations. How would she even explain it? She looked away and by accident, her eyes came to rest on her mirror. "There is a way" she said, walking over to where it lay on her dressing table. "Beast Boy calls it Nevermore."

"The portal into your mind?" Rune asked. When Raven turned to look at him he raised his hands. "Sorry, I've heard the stories."

"Now that I know Trigon is vincible and I believe I can defeat him, my mind has generally gotten a lot more peaceful. I can show you."

"You'd let me in there?" Rune asked.

Raven closed her eyes and gave a single nod for her consent. She picked up the mirror, the glass facing downwards as Rune stood beside her. "One warning" she said, still keeping the mirror down. "If we do encounter Hate, she takes the form of Trigon, your runes might not work. Even just going into the projection of Hell might be enough to render them useless."

"What about a rune I'm using now?" Rune asked. "Would it just stop or stay on as long as I'm using it in the real world?"

"It will stop" Raven told him, and flipped the mirror as they both looked at it. As she felt herself falling into the depths of her mind, her eyes suddenly snapped open. This wasn't right. This was not the peaceful descending beneath the waves she usually felt, this time it was like someone was forcing her under the water in a bathtub as she thrashed for air. She saw Rune as they fell together and realised it wasn't her fighting the embrace, it was him. He was resisting, he wanted out and he wanted it desperately. In his eyes was fear, burning fear. "Rune!" She called out, trying to reach him. "Rune! Listen to me! You need to be calm! Rune you'll upset-"

Rune's head snapped towards her and Raven recoiled in shock. Staring at her were four glowing red eyes where Rune's caring ones had once been. The eyes burned with a fury beyond any Raven had ever known, even when she had lost control.

"Rune?" Raven asked uncertainly, reaching out.

The creature in Rune's body snorted. "That is not my name" it growled at her, then kicked her away.

Raven fell, screaming until she landed hard. Raven picked herself up off the slab of rock she had landed on and looked around. She was surrounded by enormous falling shards of glass that slowly drifted downwards, reflecting memories as they crashed into each other and shattered into a thousand more. Raven looked around, Rune was nowhere in sight but she knew one thing; wherever she had landed was not Nevermore.


	19. Pieces of the Past

Raven looked around her. It was like nothing she had ever seen, the sky was a constellation that lit up the world around her as a meteor belt swirled around her, when she closed her eyes she could hear the sound as they collided and fractured against each other. From above her, the shards of memories kept falling, but muted. Raven looked as they fell around, she saw Malchior in one and reached out. As the shard slowly floated into her hand, it touched the skin and her mind flashed back. She looked around and saw the night bay of Jump City, Titans Tower rooted to the ground beneath where she floated. Raven saw her hands, heard her voice and watched she cast the spell that locked the manipulative villain back within the pages of his prison. The vision ended as Raven suddenly opened her eyes again and she was back into the fractured world. She shook her head to reacclimatise. She had to find Rune and get him back to normal, something was wrong. Something was very wrong. Raven pulled her hood up and took her first stride when a glint caught her eye. Another shard was floating past her, but she didn't recognise the vision inside. She had most certainly never visited a florist in her life. She reached out and as her fingertip brushed the surface, the vision enveloped her. Her body was walking to a window, a shop door, from inside. There was a sign on it, saying it was closed. She could see the body twisting to reach when a call caught her attention and she turned away. A slim woman with orange hair looked round a corner to see her. "Did you sign for the new fertilisers?" She asked. Raven saw her vision dip as she nodded, still silent as stone. When she looked back the sign was set to "open" but as her vision looked up from the sign, she saw her reflection in the window. The face looking back in the glass wasn't hers, it was Rune. He was skinnier, more gaunt; his cheekbones were disturbingly sharp against her skin. His eyes were full of anger, his expression dark. It was a split second as he turned angrily from his image, he couldn't bear to see his own face. The face of a killer. Metropolis would be a good place to hide for him. A large city, the place to start anew.

Raven gasped as the memory let go of her, and she returned back to the present. Catching her breath, she watched as the shard floated downwards and out of sight when she suddenly realised what this place was. It _was_ Nevermore, but fractured. It was her and Rune's mind colliding, the struggle of emotions and memories had merged as they had passed through her mirror. Maybe it was because of the struggle, whatever had come over Rune. Maybe it was because of Trigon's power that Rune wore, coming to a place that Raven had seen her father so much had set something off. Whatever it was, they needed to get out. Raven looked up as the memory of herself the time she had dressed in Robin's uniform with the rest of team split in half as it crashed into a slab of stone, a memory of Rune took up the surface of the newly fashioned fragment. Raven turned her head away from the image playing, watching Rune's memories was an invasion of privacy, no matter what the context. Raven floated along the singular path laid out before her up to arch ahead, at least some things stayed the same. Raven reached the arch and looked up at it, she realised for the first time she had ever come to this place, she had no idea where she was going to go. Raven gritted her teeth, fear would not serve her here. She needed to find Rune, that was first. She could feel her mental link to him, sharing this world meant she could trace her own link into this Nevermore to wherever Rune was… and he was hiding. Raven's head shot up, she had seen Rune throw himself at Plasmus without a second thought, he had encountered Slade and a few hours ago gone toe-to-toe with Beast Boy dauntlessly and something was making him afraid? Raven strode through the arch without a second thought as the world seamlessly melded into a large stone maze. _At least I recognise this place _Raven thought, looking around. "Hello?" She called out, looking for her clone. Why did Timid always have to be so… timid? Raven snorted in derision and started walking, looking for her emotion who could help her in here. They had helped Beast Boy and Cyborg in the unfamiliar environment, it was time they paid the favour to the owner of the mind they lived in. About an hour passed of Raven walking aimlessly around the endless passages calling out to herself. She couldn't find Timidity, nor the passage out. Something was wrong, it shouldn't be like this. Not when she needed help, they weren't supposed to abandon her. Raven took another turn and hit the wall blocking her path in anger. Why was the world conspiring against her? Raven reached another impasse and looked left. "Hello?" There was nothing. She looked right. "Anyone?" Nothing but her echoes off the cold stone walls replied. She raised her head and screamed: "Please!" She sank to her knees. She spoke in a defeated whisper. "I need help."

The wall in front of her twisted suddenly, then turned black. Raven looked up and realised it wasn't the wall, Timid had been in front of her the entire time, her grey cloak hiding her against the stone. "We all need help" Timid spoke in the same tone, kneeling down to her. "We don't know what to do."

"I need to find Rune" Rave said stubbornly, "then I need to get home."

"You can't leave" Timid said sadly, "you need to fix the problems here first."

"And how do I do that?" Raven asked testily, she wanted to leave this mistake of an idea behind, not be dragged deeper into it.

"You need to split us from them." Raven looked up and saw the shards of memories above her. It was another one of Rune's.

"Then I need to find Rune" Raven said. "I don't know a lot of this place, can you show me the way?"

Timidity nodded and offered her hand. Raven accepted the gesture and was pulled up as Timidity led the way. The two stone golems narrowed their red eyes at Timidity as she came around the corner, who shied away in fear. The real Raven followed her promptly around the corner and clenched her fists, she was not in a mood for games. The two golems lifted off the ground and smashed into each other, the largest fragment remaining of either golem after the collision could have fit in the palm of Raven's hand. It was more violent than her usual methods but she didn't care, she wanted to push through as soon as possible. Raven reached the arch and looked back to Timidity, who had followed her inches behind, repeatedly apologising dozens of times after she accidentally stood on Raven's heel. "It's fine" growled Raven as she looked up at the arch. "Will I find him through here?"

Timid gave a fearful shrug, fear in her eyes.

Raven took a slow breath. "Go back to your maze, thank you for helping me."

Timidity nodded and turned away. Raven looked back to the arch and was about to step through when she heard the her grey-cloaked doppelgänger speak. "Raven?"

Raven looked back.

"Good luck" Timidity told her, then scurried back to her sanctuary.

Raven gave a small smile and left, watching the world melt around her again, reshaping itself into another maze of sorts, with bookshelves instead of stone walls; a library. Raven smiled as she looked around a corner, searching for a trace of the girl in the yellow cloak.

"Raven?"

Raven almost jumped out her skin. She whirled around with her fist drawn back to find Intelligence, a stack three thick books high in her arms. She blinked twice. Raven exhaled in relief as she dropped her hand. "Sorry" she told her canary-coloured clone, "I'm a little on edge."

"Perfectly excusable, considering the collision of multiple aggressive personalities manifesting in this twisted augmented reality" Intelligence said, a smile on her face.

This time it was Raven's turn to blink. "Right" she said drily. "Do you know where I can find Rune and then how to solve this whole issue?"

"What do you think I'm doing?" Intelligence asked with a smile, indicating the stack of books she was holding. She brushed past Raven as she made her way back to a desk straining under the weight under hundreds of books.

"Wow" Raven said, looking up at the stacks. "Do you have enough?"

"No" Intelligence replied, the sarcasm in the question going unnoticed. "I actually wish you read a bit more sometimes, instead of just blowing up your books whenever you think about Rune. Boys" she snorted. "Who needs them when you have books?"

"You have no idea how many times I've told myself that" Raven replied.

Intelligence smiled. "Yes I do." She quickly flicked through the three before adding them to separate stacks. "Now in relation to your problem, I believe I have a hypothesis and theoretical solution."

"Finally" Raven muttered.

Intelligence flew up a few metres and examined a book in the middle of the stack. She examined it from each side before grasping it and ripping it out. The books all dropped down to fill the void and the stack wobbled but stayed standing. "The last time an outside personality entered 'Nevermore', there was the threat of them not being able to escape again."

"Beast Boy and Cyborg, I remember" Raven said irritably. "So what?"

"Well that threat was caused by our less-than-agreeable friend Rage."

"What's your point?"

"The last upset was caused by an emotional imbalance" Intelligence explained. "In that case, Rage got loose. I believe that this may be another instance of that problem."

"But I don't have any imbalances" Raven protested. "My mind is clear."

"But this isn't just your mind."

Raven was quiet a moment. "One of Rune's emotions is causing the instability?" She asked.

"That's my theory" Intelligence stated. She gestured to the arch at the other end of the library. "Find Rune, fix the imbalance and your problems with navigating Nevermore should all fix themselves."

Raven nodded her thanks to her clone who then disappeared down another aisle of bookshelves humming a tune. Raven passed through the arch and watched the world meld into a group of craggy hills with a sky that resembled a dirt-smeared gold. Flames were burning in scorched lines as far as she could see.

"Scenic" Raven remarked, looking around, before movement caught her eye. One of the rows of flames was moving. That's when Raven realised they weren't just flames, they were serpents, something of a demonic creation. She had walked into a giant snake pit. One spotted her and reared up, baring fangs that burned white hot. Raven dodged left as it struck, narrowly missing but Raven still felt the skin on her cheek sear. She gritted her teeth and took off, narrowly missing another strike that shortened her cloak by a couple inches. Raven flew up out of reach as the one chasing her hissed in frustration, its meal just out of reach. Raven closed her eyes and tapped into her mind, feeling a throbbing. Rune was here, she was sure of it. She scanned the ground beneath her before spotting a serpent that was clearly hunting. She narrowed her eyes and moved off, it was past time that the predators became the prey. She passed over the blackened lines that served as their trails before she spotted Rune. He was too far away for her to see in any detail but she could feel it was him. She angled herself lower and flew to catch up, but she wasn't the only one in pursuit of Rune.

Rune's breathing was hard and fast as he ran over the rocky dunes. He could hear the hiss of the fire serpent and feel its heat on his back as it raced after him. Rune jumped the crest and slid down the other side before taking off again. He heard the rocks exploding as the serpent just barrelled straight through them. It was close behind. Rune broke off left, keeping his path forever changing, making sure he was never moving in a straight line. The burn up the side of his arm where the snake had spat at him was a good teacher of why that was a bad idea. His clothes were torn from the chase but aside from that he was remarkably untouched, though he knew he wouldn't stay like that for long. In the past few minutes he had already had more close calls than in the rest of the time put together. Rune stumbled as he ran up the next hill and pushed himself up off his palms, it was only a small graze as they turned red with specks of blood. The snake behind him lunged and hit the ground just short of his heels with an explosion. Rune screamed as the shockwave of hot air threw him over the hill and he rolled down the other side, pressing a hand to his back in a futile attempt to soothe the pain. His hair and clothes were ridden with the smell of smoke. He gritted his teeth and tried to muffle his breathing mixed with the cries of pain. Looking around, Rune spotted a small overhang of rock he could hide under, almost a cave but not quite. Rune shuffled quickly to take cover, pushing himself along on his good arm, his tattoos and etched skin next to useless. He heard the sound of the flames as the serpent raised its reformed head and came over the hill cautiously, trying to find where its prey had fled to. Rune felt the beads of sweat begin to grow on his skin, the mixture of heat and fear was wearing him down. Rune watched the air in front of him begin to shimmer and glow; it was close. _Keep going _Rune prayed, _keep going, it doesn't know where I am. It is just fire, fire cannot smell. It can grow, it can spread, but it cannot smell. I will survive this. I will… _Rune's train of thought was interrupted as the snake rolled down the hill and slowed in the gorge, head whipping left and right, forked tongue jabbing in and out with puffs of black smoke escaping its mouth. Rune could feel his heart hammering in his chest as he tried to push himself as far back as possible. The snake seemed to try to listen for a moment before seemingly giving up, slithering over the next hill to continue the search, satisfied Rune wasn't anywhere near it. Rune didn't move until he saw the tip of the tail disappear over the hill before he let his muscles unlock and his breathing resume again. Rune let his strained eyes rest under the cover of his eyelids before crawling out of his hiding spot, he had to keep moving. Rune pushed himself out but stayed alert for other snakes, the world was quiet, _safe for now. _Rune turned just in time to see the fire serpent lunging at him, it had never been fooled. Time seemed to slow as Rune watched, he could see all the way down the snake's throat where the flames burned white hot. Rune stayed quiet as he let his eyes close, he would not watch this. The snake flew forward, triumph in its blazing eyes as it closed in for the kill before suddenly slamming into a black wall.

"Not today" Raven said grittily as she landed in front of Rune and threw up a shield. The snake exploded against the wall and the flames twisted in tendrils as it reformed once again. Raven dropped the shield and threw forward her fist, a blast of power erupting forth and splitting the snake in half, the flames thrashed wildly in resistance. Raven closed her fingers as she cast balls around each half and began to compress them. "Fire cannot burn without air" she said grittily, closing it further. The flames tried desperately to push back but they were no match for Raven's determination as she choked them to nothing but smoke before letting her power fade out again. She looked to see they were in no more immediate danger before she noticed Rune had disappeared. "Rune!" She yelled out, "it's only me, the snake is dead! Where are you?" There was no reply but she saw his foot pull back slightly, trying to remove itself from her view. Rune had tried to hide himself back under the rock whole she had fought. _So much for bravery _Raven thought, rolling her eyes. "Rune" she said, walking over. "Come out, we need to get out of here." She knelt down to him.

"You shouldn't be here" Rune said quietly, hiding his face from her. "You should've gotten out."

"I can't leave without you" Raven replied, "So get out here." A screech caught her attention as she turned around, both hands blazing. The snakes hadn't returned, at least not yet. She looked back to see Rune hadn't moved. There had to be more this, what was making him so afraid? "Rune?" She asked, "what's wrong?"

"Promise me something" Rune told her.

"What?" Raven asked.

"That you won't leave."

"Why would I leave?" Raven asked, confused. She didn't understand any of this but as Rune dropped his arms and raised his head, her next sentence died in her throat. Rune met her stare but he was not Rune. Looking back at her, where his two hard irises had been were now four. Raven's breath caught in her throat, Rune was looking at her with four eyes, just like… Trigon. There were minute raises at his temples, focussing on him Raven realised they were actually small horns. His body was different too, more lithe and his jawline was sharper. His ears were slightly pointed as well, giving him a vaguely cat-like appearance. "What did this to you?" Raven asked, her voice hollow and shocked.

Rune came out and looked down in Raven's eyes. "This is what I am" he told her. "The 'real me' if you have taste for that kind of language."

"But…" Raven started, struggling for words. The rest of her question about why he had appeared human before fell away.

"It's a rune" the half-human told her. "When I showed you and the other Titans my powers against the courses, you asked how had all the power in the runes not torn my body apart. This is how. When I was taken, Trigon… changed me. Created a body that could take the strain and not snap. Do you know what it's like to be unmade?"

Raven found herself paralysed by Rune's words. She could only fumble at shaking her head.

"He made me into something that humanity would spit on, kick at but never be able to ignore. He said I would be the shadows around the candle, forever forbidden from entering and joining the light."

"That's why he called you Darkside" Raven said, realising.

Rune could only nod to confirm, his eyes were narrowed and he was looking at the ground in shame of his appearance. Raven's heart tightened, she wanted to hold him and tell him she didn't care but this wasn't the place, time was of the essence. Plus, Raven didn't want to admit, the shock of seeing Rune had hit her so hard she wasn't sure if she didn't care after all.

"Why do you look normal out there?" Raven asked, "in our world?"

Rune touched his elbow, "it's a rune" he explained. "It allows me to hide, create false images over the truth lying beneath. It wasn't hard to put who I used to be over who I am. I didn't want you to know, that's why I tried to get out when you said the runes wouldn't work here. I'm the reason we're stuck in this."

Raven didn't bother replying as she surveyed the world around them. She couldn't see an arch in any direction and the world looked the same in every direction, she had no idea from which direction she had come.

"Raven" Rune grunted, pointing. Raven joined him to see the air begin to shimmer in the direction Rune was pointing; the flaming serpents were returning. Raven gritted her teeth and clenched a fist, then let it unfurl. This fight couldn't be won by force but Nevermore was so much more than brutal and mindless clashes. She sat down in the lotus position, exhaled and touched her fists to each other. "What are you doing?" Rune asked.

"Sit" She instructed him.

Rune complied and Raven called upon her power, her mind. The dust on the rocky surface began to shimmer and shake as a wind began to turn around them. Rune looked around as the wind began to increase in ferocity, tearing at his clothes. Raven was unfazed, her cape whipping out behind her as her eyes shone white with power. The serpents came into view but a dome of energy spilled from Raven, keeping them out. They threw themselves at the dome but Raven's power was too strong, keeping them out.

Rune was busy watching when Raven's voice commanded his attention. "Focus on me" she told him, then entered his mind. Raven focussed as she began to untie all the knots twisted between their minds, the ties to Nevermore. If they were still as tangled as they were in Nevermore, then there was no telling if they would be the same people that went into Nevermore coming out. She gently removed the touches of his hopes, her dreams, his doubts, her concerns. Raven had almost finished as she came to the biggest knot of all, their fears. She forced a swallow as she peeled the layers away and images flashed past her. She was prepared for most of them, The Brain, Malchior, even Slade but one image suddenly made her bones chill. Trigon's eyes bore into her, flames surrounded her as her arms lit up red. Raven screamed then fell back, and out of her focus. She looked around and realised the snakes weren't attacking anymore. The sky darkened to red as the flames began to shy away. Then the laughter started to boom. At first Raven mistook it as thunder, but as each new syllable rolled through, Raven realised with horror what it really was. "How?" She asked herself, pressing her head into her hands. "I defeated him, I sent him back where he belongs, I'm not afraid of him, how is he here?"

Rune spoke up. "He's not a manifestation of your fear." The laughter stopped, leaving the world with an eerie quietness. "It's mine."

The earth shuddered once, then again. Raven wondered why the tremors were getting stronger, then realised they weren't getting stronger, they were getting _closer._ Unbidden, her heart started to pound within her chest. It was him. He was back. There was suddenly an eruption of dirt as an enormous red fist burst out through the Earth in the distance. It gripped the edge of the chasm and an arm followed the hand, followed by a head with long white hair and four red eyes. Trigon.

As he looked around and laughed, Raven watch Rune's shoulders sag, he was almost crumbling in on himself. Raven ran to him and wrapped her hands around his shoulders. "Rune this is your fear, you have to fight it."

"How?" Rune asked. "He's unbeatable and I'm powerless here, there's no way I can stop him."

"You can beat him" Raven whispered hurriedly in his ear. In the distance, Trigon turned and seeing the two kneeling bodies in the dirt, smiled wickedly.

"Trigon's magic fuels my power" Rune argued, "he's the source of my runes, against him I'm useless."

"No you're not" Raven told him, a mad idea forming in her mind. Drastic situations called for drastic solutions. She touched two fingers to Rune's temples. "Trigon isn't the only one with power."

Rune felt the energy begin to flow into him and his mouth dropped open in ecstasy, it was back. He had felt empty, alone, separated without it but now he was whole. Raven added another boost and Rune felt himself being lifted to another echelon of power. Rune closed his eyes and a black silhouette of himself stepped out of his body and began to grow. Raven watched as the silhouette grew to a colossal height, matching Trigon's terrific size. Just as Beast Boy and Cyborg had helped her in her fight, she would help Rune. The silhouette had shining white eyes like hers and as it stretched its power, the the runes burst into a brilliant white over his arms. Trigon had also witnessed Rune's empowering and was now charging, intent of breaking Rune back down again. Rune narrowed his white eyes and charged in reply, the two huge figures hurtling towards each other amongst the stone dunes. Trigon swung first but Rune ducked and grabbed Trigon by the head, tossing him as Rune spun. Trigon landed, his fingers clawing gouges in the ground. Rune touched his arms and two runes lit up even brighter as he threw two rings of light at Trigon, exploding and shrouding him in dust. The effect seemed only to be enraging Trigon as he came out of the cloud with a roar as he attacked Rune. Rune took steps back to avoid swings but stumbled and Trigon caught him with a blow under the ribs. Raven gasped as her body suddenly lurched. She took a hand from Rune and pressed it against her body, feeling a welt beginning to grow where the blow had hit Rune. A blow to Rune's projection of power carried across to her, they had to be more careful. Rune seemed to know as he adopted a more defensive stance, bracing for the next exchange. Trigon came at him and Rune ducked under a wild punch before slamming an uppercut into Trigon's jaw. The pair traded blows as their battle forcefully reshaped the earth. Raven didn't let go of one wince, no matter how hard Trigon beat Rune, she and Rune only leant more strength to hit back. Raven didn't pay attention to the bruises that were crossing over their sorcerous bond. Rune slammed a palm into Trigon's chest and with the flash of another rune, blasted the demonic vision back through the air. Trigon recovered, but only to one knee. Rune didn't hesitate as he charged, determined to finish this. As he was about to bring down his last blow though, Trigon's hand shot out and wrapped itself around Rune's throat. Rune opened his mouth for air, trying fruitlessly to break free. Trigon rose as Rune fell to his knees, his strength fading. Raven tried desperately to fuel more power through Rune but it wasn't working, he was caught in Trigon's clutches. Raven watched in horror as Trigon laughed from across the battlefield and the runes on Rune's arms began to fade and disappear in bursts of light. The black silhouette form was beginning to blur and fade. Trigon was taking back his power. The real Rune sitting in front of her began to slump, his breathing was slowing. Raven watched helplessly, they were losing the fight and Rune was about to become trapped here. A purple handprint began to visibly emerge on Raven's throat as Trigon tightened his grip around the neck of Rune's projection. With her last bit of effort, Raven decided to try and help Rune in a different way. Instead of forcing power through, she flooded him with memories. Memories of her fear, of Trigon's emergence into the world… and her friends. Their hope, how they stopped fighting, how they never gave up on her. Robin literally going into Hell to bring her back. How she beat her fear… and him. She showed him the memory of every blast she hit him with, every time he grunted, cried out in pain, showed weakness, showed vulnerability. If she could break Trigon's image, then Rune could break his power. Rune's projection started shrinking and shrinking as it sank towards the ground. Then Rune in front of took a sharp breath in. The silhouette's lines snapped back into focus and its eyes glowed bright white. Raven watched as the runes lit up down Rune's arms and the silhouette drove both fists into Trigon's torso before blasting him away. Trigon landed hard but still recovered and hurled a ball of flame at Rune's chest. Another rune brightened and the fire simply passed through him, Rune left untouched. Sensing he was losing the battle, Trigon screamed and charged but Rune raised his fists and smashed them into the ground, rupturing a crevice along the ground. The ground underneath Trigon exploded as he stumbled and Rune grabbed him by the throat. Raven watched as the runes brightened all across his body and Trigon roared before fading away into nothingness. The silhouette looked back to Raven and nodded and she released her power, the real Rune opened his eyes as the spiritual projection faded.

"Are you okay?" Raven asked, despite knowing she would probably look just as damaged under her clothes.

Rune looked at her with a smile. "Yes. I'm not afraid anymore."

Raven smiled as she drew him into a hug, Rune held her embrace tightly as he could without making her wince. They broke apart and rested their foreheads together as Raven reached up and, touching his mind, unwound the last knot. Rune felt the twisting as he felt the world fall out from under him and suddenly he was flying.

Rune's eyes snapped open and he took a large gasp of air. Raven's black ceiling filled his vision, he was lying on her floor. He sat up and rubbed his head while across, Raven did the same. She watched as he shimmered for a second before being replaced his human image once again. She sighed sadly as he looked himself and visibly relaxed, relieved to hide the scars Trigon had left on him. "Are you okay?" Rune asked Raven.

"I was just about to ask you the same thing" Raven replied, getting up.

Rune stretched and rubbed his eyes. "I feel like shit, I want to sleep for a week."

Raven opened her mouth but Rune's communicator with Robin's voice beat her to it. "Rune, Beast Boy, time for your extra training session, work off all that extra energy you two seem to have."

Rune groaned while Raven could only try to manage a sympathetic look. "Fuck" he muttered, "you have got to be kidding me."

"Bad luck" Raven told him, "you should hurry if you don't want to be late."

"Thanks for the support" Rune grumbled, turning to leave and walking out into the hall.

"Rune?" Raven asked. Rune looked around, clearly expecting a message of support or something cute of Raven to show her feelings.

"Close the door on your way out" Raven told him, grabbing a book and walking back to her bed.


	20. Slade's Prize

Rune woke the next morning and stretched, wincing from his back that was covered in bruises. It had been a brutal day yesterday for Rune and Beast Boy, Robin had made them do drills and exercises to tire them out before demanding they spar with him as a team. Of course the two boys still had their wounded pride to nurse and did nothing to help each other as Robin then proceeded to whip them senseless with his bamboo staff. By the end, both boys were covered in bruises and welts, and though they were still far from being best friends again, found a mutual camaraderie in grumbling about how much of a prick their leader was. Rune let the shower beat down upon his bruises before tying his hair up loosely and going out to find something to eat. Opening the door though, he found that there was someone else of a like mind; Beast Boy. The changeling was the only one in the room as he turned to look at Rune before going back to eating his tofu eggs. The silence in the room became uncomfortable as Rune opened a few drawers looking for something to eat before settling on some of Starfire's pie from dinner last night. Rune leant against the kitchen bench as he picked at it with a fork while Beast Boy sat across from him. Rune eventually broke the silence first as he dropped the fork with a clatter on the plate. "Hey B, I may think you can a complete prick at times but that doesn't excuse the things I said yesterday" Rune said awkwardly, he wasn't exactly used to apologising. "It was bullshit, I was just being a dick and hitting you where it hurts, I'm sorry." Raven's reaction at him yesterday was part of the motivation behind his apology but seeing Beast Boy still in his emotional state yesterday at Robin's second training for them had surprised Rune, whose own anger had long simmered.

Beast Boy shifted awkwardly and looked away, he was just as unused to apologies it seemed. "You know you kinda suck at apologies" he finally said as a crude joke.

"Tell me about it" Rune muttered. There were another few moments before the two made eye contact and Beast Boy put his head down, trying to smother a laugh at how stupid this all was. Rune could feel it bubbling in him too and despite his efforts, a chuckle escaped his shaking shoulders. Beast Boy just managed to swallow his food before a throaty laugh escaped him and soon enough, both guys were laughing until the pain from the bruises that peppered their ribs became too much too bear and they started groaning instead. "Hey B" Rune said, looking his friend in the eye. "With all that's going, we're not sure…"

Beast Boy nodded, instantly grasping his meaning. _He's a lot smarter under his jokes than anyone gives him credit for _Rune figured. "Until you two want to tell the rest of the team, I don't know a thing" Beast Boy promised. "just…" He kept going, "just understand that I liked Raven, a lot. I'm not going to start any fights but don't expect me to be happy for you, not yet at least. I just wanted her to be happy."

"That's all I ever want" Rune replied and the two returned to silence before Robin marched in with a straight back, eyes facing front. He quickly strode over to the computer and brought up a screen, fingers flying furiously over the keys. Rune and Beast Boy traded questioning glances before Rune spoke up; "Do we have a mission?"

Robin turned as the screen showed a map of Jump City, decorated by one flashing red dot. "Yeah" he said with gritted teeth.

"Who's taking this one?" Beast Boy asked, they didn't have anyone in the city and protection of the last ascendence gem was still very much their highest priority.

"We all are, save one" Robin said, surprising them. "Speed is imperative, we'll be in and out as soon as possible."

Beast Boy finished the remaining half of his breakfast in one swallow as the rest of the team joined them.

"So who's staying behind on this one?"

"If I may Robin" Starfire said quietly, raising her hand, "I would be the one to keep watch over the tower, I do not feel like all of myself today."

Robin nodded his approval and looked to the rest of the team.

Rune cracked his neck "A war in the streets and not even breakfast?"

"Looks like a busy day" Beast Boy.

"Then we'd better get started" Robin growled as he turned, "Titans, go!"

Rune turned and ran with his leader and the rest of the group, sharing the briefest of glances with Raven. It was clear that she shared the same seeds of doubt that were now growing in the pit of Rune's stomach. Robin mounted his R-Cycle and took off, followed closely by Cyborg and Beast Boy in the T-Car, Raven and Rune, who was ferried by Raven's disc of energy on which she surfed through the air. The team screamed through the streets of Jump City, making good time. Robin gripped the throttle of the bike until the knuckles underneath his green gloves. The visual readout on the visor of his helmet that Cyborg had installed lit up as a call was rerouted from the tower. He accepted the call and looked at the ID behind it. "Commissioner?" He asked, concealed surprise in his voice.

"Robin" the commissioner acknowledged in return. "I'm hearing reports that would almost make me believe the Titans have finally ventured from their tower in numbers greater than two. Care to elaborate?"

"We received the report" Robin replied, "gang war gone wrong, one of your precincts pinned down and taking casualties, heavy arms fire. This wasn't something we could ignore. Tell them we're on our way."

"While it's good to know that you'd charge to our aid, I'm afraid the gesture is a little unneeded" the commissioner said uncertainly, forehead frowned in confusion. "There is no firefight, not now at least. My precincts are fine, where did you get your intel?"

"From your systems" Robin replied, his voice wavering minutely with uncertainty. "Do you have a bug in your computers?" Cyborg buzzed to speak to him but Robin ignored it, keeping his speed up despite the growing ache in his stomach. This mission was starting to feel very wrong. A gang war needed preparation, one did not get out of bed to morning and go out to fight, it was executed at the death of the sunlight. There was no mention of it in the news, had it all been a fabrication?

"We've had no issues," the commissioner replied slowly, "are you sure you got your information from me?"

"Well it came from your computers," Robin replied, "and if it wasn't your men, then it had to be a hacker with the skills to get in and out of your system without leaving a trace."

"That would take some serious skill" the commissioner bristled, "our system has some of the best cyber-security in the country. Why would someone go through all that effort anyway just to send you on a wild goose chase?"

"To get us to leave the tower" Robin said, saying the words before the meaning behind them hit him. Robin flashed back to the memory of what Rune had told him what Slade had said; _It was so easy to hack the police computers…_

"Starfire!" He yelled, the communication to the commissioner cut as he opened an emergency channel to the tower. The wheels of his bike underneath screeched as he yanked hard on the brakes and brought the bike sideways in a wild skid. "Starfire! Come in!"

There was nothing.

Robin's heart clenched in his chest as all the other Titans stopped around him. Robin looked at them and realised where they were. Smothering the team in shadow was the precinct that had been supposedly under attack, looking and sounding very safe and sound, there was nothing save the steam from Raven and Rune's breath as they waited, looking down. The message had been a fake. "Starfire! Please!" He screamed into his radio. His heart slammed against his ribs with every beat.

"I am here" Starfire's voice suddenly flowed into his ear, allowing Robin to release the breath trapped in his lungs. "Is something wrong?"

"The gang war was a ploy to lure us away from the tower" Robin said quickly. "Are you safe? Where's the gem?"

"I am fine" Starfire replied quickly, "the gem with me."

"I think Slade may be coming for it" Robin said, "hold tight, we're coming home double-time." He gripped the throttle when an alert from the bike's computer made him stop and look down.

"We can't go home yet" Cyborg said, seeing the same data roll through onto the T-Car's screen. "There's five new alerts, all of them Priority Red."

"A fire starting at a gas refinery, hijacking of armoured transport convoy, a mass breakout in progress at the prison…" Beast Boy read off, "has the whole world gone completely nuts?!"

"Slade just wants to make us think that" Robin replied. "Starfire and the gem are the real targets, these are just distractions to keep us busy. We need to get back to the tower now, coming here was a mistake."

"Robin, we can't!" Cyborg cut in, "if even one of these situations is real and we ignore it, then a lot of good people are gonna die, we just can't abandon them!"

"Slade is only trying to split us up!" Raven said, her voice was quieter than Robin's roar yet seemed to have the same silencing effect on any group.

"Help the people!" Starfire said in their ears, "I am far from defenceless, if Slade comes expecting to pry this easily away, he will find himself sorely mistaken."

"He's more than a match for any of us alone" Robin argued.

"I only need to delay him" Starfire countered, "before I expect one of you shall arrive. Also I am capable of flight and the last time I checked, Slade was not. I am perfectly capable of fleeing to preserve the gem's safety."

"Starfire and Cyborg are right, we don't have a choice" Robin said, relenting. "Everyone takes a situation and makes sure there is nothing happening."

"I can do you a favour Boy Wonder" the commissioner told him, his voice cutting back in. "Police boats are moving out into the harbour, if Slade poses as big a threat as you say he does, then we might not be able to stop him but we will be able to buy you some time for the girl to be safe. If we can get you a minute, well you seem to save the world with only a few seconds to spare pretty frequently so I'd love to see what you could do with sixty."

"I appreciate it commissioner" Robin said. He looked at the rest of his team, "as soon as you know the area is clear, you haul ass back home!"

A green cat jumped out the passenger window and shifted into a pterodactyl in midair, humongous wings scattering loose newspapers as they flapped to gain altitude. Robin was already gone in a cloud of tire smoke as the T-Car followed in hot pursuit. Rune jumped off Raven's disk of energy and she too flew away. Rune watched her leave for less than a second before he started to run. The closest alert was only a few blocks away and he knew the others would have left it for him, he wasn't as fast as they were. "You're getting close to the warehouse" Robin told him in his earpiece. "It's holding canisters of toxic gas, bombs reported to be on all the major support structures. If that building comes down on all the canisters inside, the gas cloud will kill anyone within a five block radius, a lot more if the wind picks up."

"Understood" Rune replied, rounding a corner and seeing two thick doors blocking his way. A silhouette in the shadows of the warehouse watched as a section of the door began to glow orange with heat before it melted through and toppled inwards, Rune's irises fading back from the glowing orange as he stepped inwards, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. He quickly ran to the corner of the building, not failing to notice the many canisters stamped with a biohazard symbol. He leaped to the framework in the corner, moving up quickly as he searched for any forms of explosive. The search proving fruitless, he jumped and twisted, catching the catwalk by his fingertips. Rune pulled and nearly threw himself upwards, catching the next bar up and pulled his body over, scanning the ceiling. If Slade had hidden a bomb here, he had certainly gone through a lot of effort to conceal it. Rune leapt from the catwalk to a light and shimmied up the chain to reach the central beam. Throughly checking it, Rune shook his head with a twitch of anger. Robin had been right, this had just been another Slade's games and diversions, just another reflection in his hall of smoke and mirrors. "Rune to Robin" he called, pressing his fingers to his earpiece as he got back to the catwalk.

"What have you got Rune?" Came the reply as Rune slid down the ladder.

"Just a diversion, Slade obviously wanted at least one of us out of the way."

"You're certain?"

"Positive" Rune replied, looking around. He walked among the canisters making a brief visual check but he didn't find anything, a bomb would need to bring down the building in order to generate the shockwave for maximum capacities, a bomb amongst the canisters themselves would be lucky to kill a few birds as it leaked out the broken windows. "There's nothing…" Rune's voice died in his throat as he came back around the corner heading for the door and saw the figure standing in his way.

"Rune? Repeat that."

Rune never took his eyes over the silhouette. "There's no bomb here, focus on the other locations, I'll find a way back to the Tower as soon as I can."

"Roger that" Robin acknowledged. "Over and out."

Rune pulled the communicator out of his ear and threw it to the figure. "No backup, no surprises, just you and me."

Rose smiled at him, "And here I thought we'd never get the chance for some privacy."

Rune didn't return the smile, his eyes flicked up and down her body once, specifically the weapons and armour fixed to her body. She had a small .22 calibre pistol fastened to each thigh, two daggers on her hips and the rest of her body was covered in a black skin suit, thickening around her shoulders and chest. Her brown hair was tied back in a short ponytail with a fringe that hung just above her eyebrows. Her build was slim and lithe, agile and quick in a fight… Rune did not want to think about this. It had only been days since he discovered the girl he once loved and thought he murdered was alive, now he considering her strengths and weakness for a fight. "Rose, what is all this?" He asked. "Was this you? Something elaborate to get me out of the tower and alone? You could just sent me a message… years ago."

"You didn't kill me Finn" she called.

Rune flinched. "I don't go by that name anymore."

Rose laughed. "You'll always be Finn to me."

Rune was still caught in staring at her, still trying to convince his brain that what he was seeing was real. "What happened?"

"I went deep" Rose told him, "your blast put me in a coma, I was under for over a year. When I woke, I was not in Gotham anymore, our old home. That was behind me, so I suppose you could say you killed Rose after all." She grinned and Rune felt tentacles of ice begin to wrap and constrict around his stomach, his throat, and his heart. "I was trained, introduced to the person I really was, you remember my brothers?"

"I remember" Rune growled, "particularly Grant, he threatened me quite a bit about what would happen should I break your heart."

"He's dead" Rose said flatly.

Rune inclined his head solemnly, "sorry to hear. So now you're trying to take his place as the head of the family?"

Rose grinned again and the tentacles of cold tightened. "Oh I'm not the head" she told him, making Rune narrow his eyes in confusion, trying to read the smile on her face. His eyes widened as the shine of blades caught his eye. He leant back as a blade that had been flat against her wrist shot for his neck but only succeeded in cutting a line along his cheek. Rune gently brushed the cut in disbelief, seeing the blood on his fingers as lines of red travelled up over his neck and the cut sealed back up again. She nodded at him, "nice party trick, shall I show you some of mine?"

Rune shook his head sadly. "Rose, please, don't do this."

"You can't stop what's coming" Rose told him, then suddenly her daggers were in her hands and she was running at him. They were a pair of sai, the prongs of the hilt looking just as sharp as the blade. Rune ran to meet her as she jumped and flipped. Rune paused and her foot suddenly lashed out, catching his jaw. Rune hit the ground but rolled back up instantly as Rose landed. "There's only one way you leave" she taunted him, "but it's not like you'll have to do anything you haven't done before."

Whatever composure was keeping Rune in place snapped. "I told you to run!" He roared, running to her. Rose charged to meet him and they met in the light from one of the clear panels that made up the ceiling. She stabbed and he pushed her hand way, she snaked around his blows and launched counters before there was a chance to blink; she was good, ruthlessly good. One slip up here would mean death for him as he watched the hands and blades come towards him, while he tried to fight clinically. She tried to fake a stab and hit him with a right hook but Rune caught her by the wrist. "All those years ago and you didn't!" He yelled as he pulled and threw her over his shoulder. She hit the ground and bounced once. Rune felt his back heating up and gingerly felt it, giving a quiet gasp in pain. Rose raised herself up and showed him one of her sai with a smile; the tip was blood red. She had cut him.

"You spilt my blood, I spill yours" she told him as they eyed each other up again.

"I never wanted any of that to happen, you know I didn't" Rune told her.

Rose's gaze never wavered. "What we felt is irrelevant, it's what we do that the past remembers. I was almost killed and you were the killer."

"Shut up!" Rune screamed, lashing out wildly at her. She nimbly flipped out of his reach and ducked behind a corner. He dashed after her but rounded the corner to only find empty air.

"You're a thief, you're a liar, you murdered the one you love." Rose's words bounced off the walls around him as Rune whirled fruitlessly, looking for Rose. He pressed his hands to his face, trying to regain some serenity, he couldn't lose it here, there was too much at stake. Rune looked up and saw the flash of light on metal. It only took a few seconds of climbing before Rune landed on the catwalk opposite Rose, she brandished her sai hungrily. He thrust out his wrist with a rune charging but she pushed it aside off her face as a bolt of power shot off through empty air before twisting it and kicking at his ankles. Rune flipped around to straighten his arm before pushing her back and coming after her swinging. She angled herself and flowed around his arms as he tried to strike her, countering with a quick kick to his body that made him take a step back. The metal grating shifted under Rune's feet, diverting his attention and almost costing him his life as Rose shot another blade from her wrist. Rune twisted out of the way as it whistled past his ears and paused, watching Rose take equally heavy breaths. Rose twirled the sai in her hands before running at him, Rune gritted his teeth and charged to meet her. She stabbed forward in a flurry of thrusts at his throat and eyes before Rune grabbed her by the wrist and swung her round, driving her body into the railing. He grabbed her other wrist and they struggled against each other. Rune drove a knee into her thigh before Rose twisted her hand free and backhanded him with the hilt of the dagger, knocking him away briefly. She chased and tried to stab him but he blocked her arm and punched her twice in the stomach and hitting one of her daggers free where it skittered off the edge off the catwalk and fell to the ground below. She pressed her other hand to the sai and strained as the point bore down on the soft flesh just above Rune's collarbone. Rune grunted as she kicked at one of his knees, trying to get above him. Rune held for a moment before he twisted away and Rose went stumbling forward. Rune caught her wrist and with it pressed the blade to Rose's neck. One push, one pull, one strong moment and it would all be over. "What are you waiting for?" She hissed into his ear, voice filled with poison. "Do it." Rune hesitated and she drove an elbow into his ribs before vaulting him over her shoulders. Rune hit the ground hard and struggled to keep in his cry of pain, the metal grating floor didn't make for a gentle cushion. He rolled back onto his front and pushed back up where Rose was once again idly twirling her one sai through her fingers. "You can't kill me twice?" She asked slowly. "But the first time you managed it so easily."

"Shut up," Rune growled at her, "shut the fuck up right now, why are you doing this? If you wanted me alone or even dead you didn't have to do all this, what is this all about?"

She tutted and pursed her lips provocatively at him. "I can't tell you all those juicy little details just yet, I guess you'll just have to wait and see." She scraped the blade of the sai against the handle of the rail and Rune gasped, the sound triggering a black rune on his back. He grabbed at the rail for support and the black energy jumped excitedly from his arm into the rail and spread along the entire catwalk. Rose pulled her hand back as the catwalk began to tremor. Bolts exploded out of their fixtures, screws fell out of every handle as the catwalk deconstructed and the pair fell to ground amongst the metal hail tumbling to the ground as the warehouse erupted with noise. The echoes flew around the structure, fading out like ripples on the water back into silence again. Rune coughed and groaned, pushing a piece of grating off himself before looking around. The catwalk on the other side had collapsed on one end but the canisters were secure. Rose was nowhere to be seen. Rune took a few deep breaths before limping away. He was almost at the door before he heard her whisper bounce around the room again. "You're a thief, you're a liar, you murdered the one you love."

Rune gritted his teeth and rounded to see her standing removed at the edge of the shadows. Rune growled as he kicked up a piece of the rail into his hands, bearing it like a staff. She smiled at that but held up a hand. "Enough, you did perform so sweetly, I suppose you deserve a treat. Well, ask away."

Rune thought about everything he was bursting to ask, why she was doing what she was doing, what had happened to her during her disappearance, but then he realised those answers would only sate his own desires, there was more at stake here than just his own inner peace. "Who's your contact in Jump City?" Rune asked. He gestured to the warehouse around them, "this was perfectly planned and executed, no way you could've done this alone, who's helping you?"

"I am" said another voice; a man's, low, deadly and confident. Rune's eyes widened as Slade stepped out of the shadows and placed a hand on Rose's shoulder, to which she didn't even flinch. "I found her in her coma, I saved and revived her, then later trained her, taught her, mastered her."

"What did she have anything to do with you Slade?" Rune demanded.

"As I'm sure you know," Slade continued, toying with Rune, "trying to find an apprentice to continue my legacy has been somewhat… difficult. First Robin, then Terra, were both failures because they couldn't devote loyalties as strong as I required. I needed to find someone closer, build them from the ground up. When I learned what had happened to Rose, I immediately returned to Gotham and took her away."

"Why did she matter to you?" Rune asked, fearing all the possible answers that loomed before him.

"For the greatest of reasons," Slade, looking down at his new apprentice. "Rose Wilson is my daughter."

Rune didn't have enough mental fortitude left in him as knowledge smashed into the front of his brain, crushing it inside his skull. He dropped to his knees as he watched the two keep their unblinking stare fixed on him. "Slade's your father" he said simply to Rose.

She nodded, "I owe him everything, I am loyal to the one who loves me the most."

Rune screamed in pure anger as he pushed back up and charged with the rail in his hands, intent on driving it through Slade's heart or cleaving off his head. Rune jumped through the air but was suddenly paralysed as a blanket of black energy grabbed him from behind. He managed to turn his head enough to see Raven floating in the entrance, one hand outstretched as she held Rune. Rune struggled against his bindings and screamed as Raven began to pull him backwards. Slade seemed only too amused. "It appears our encounter will have to wait until next time little Titan. Goodbye." The pair disappeared back into the shadows together, Slade's arm still on Rose's back.

Rune kept struggling with all his strength but it was pointless against Raven's power. Just before she enveloped him in her ethereal raven, he heard Rose call out one more time, "you're a thief, you're a liar…"

"YOU MURDERED THE ONE YOU LOVE!" Rose screamed as the black raven spread it's wings and flew out of the doors into the light.

She spun around and looked at her father, her shoulders rising and falling as she breathed heavily, though it was more excitement than fatigue that drove her need for oxygen. "That was fun" she breathed.

"That was sloppy" Slade reprimanded her. When Rose looked at him with confusion on her face, he sighed. "I watched your fight, I saw no less than seven situations where you could've ended him, I trained you to kill and yet you did not."

"I wanted to prolong the pain," Rose replied, her cheshire cat smile returning, "and the fun."

Slade walked past her with his hands joined behind his back, viewing the destruction of the fight. "You were sloppy" he said slowly, "or you were hesitant, and I can accept neither from my apprentice."

Rose's expression soured. "I did not hesitate! I could've killed him but I chose not to, to prolong his pain."

"You say that" said Slade, starting to look over his shoulder, "but I cannot help but wonder if it was more than that. Rune is loyal to the Titans but would not kill you out of love. If it came down to a choice between him or myself, I am not sure who you would choose."

"You" Rose said instantly, without needing to think. "I am loyal to you and only you."

Slade waited for a moment before speaking again. "It matters not, words are wind but your actions will reveal who you truly are."

He began to walk away and Rose felt bewildered, and angry. She looked around and saw one of her sai on the ground, the one Rune had knocked away. She picked it up, looking at the deadly edge at the point of the blade, then turned to look at Slade, his back turned. Her eyes travelled from the point back to Slade again, the anger and desperation forming an idea of pure madness in her mind. "You have doubts about my loyalty to you" she said softly. She spun the blade around in her hand so it was right for stabbing, then she struck.

Slade heard the screams and turned around quickly, hands in fists, bracing for an attack. Instead what greeted him was Rose standing where she was, both of her hands wrapped around the hip of her sai, the blade of which was in her eye socket. Slade watched as she gruesomely worked at moving the blade around, blood poured down her socket and face. Rose let out of sound similar to that of a dying animal as she shuddered and yanked, giving one last scream of pain. Rose's arm shot out and caught her prize as she cut the last tie and her eye fell out, a brown iris and pupil staring blandly off into space. She held it out by the pink cord from the back and dropped it into Slade's hand, taking her hands away from her face to reveal a grotesque bloody crevice that blood was still freely pouring out of. Slade looked at the eye then back at his daughter who had just mutilated herself.

"I would do anything for you" Rose growled at him, obviously trying not to reveal how much pain she had just caused. Her left eye, her only eye looked into his, fearless and unblinking.

Slade studied her for a moment before producing a mask similar to his own, albeit with a few differences. "Every assassin has a handle, a title that inspires more fear in men than any weapon. This name is a legacy, it can be passed on, and all that sustains it is an image. Mine is Deathstroke."

"And I will carry it on?" Rose asked.

"No" Slade told her, "you are too skilled to only carry on the fear of someone else's image, when we are finished you will have carved out your own place in the world and men will fear to even say your name, let alone confront your face." He offered the mask which she took from him, looking down at it. A few drops of blood dripped from her chin and splattered on it. Slade waited before she looked back at him. "I am Slade Wilson" he told her, "but this," he touched his mask, "this is Deathstroke." He reached out and put a protective hand back over her shoulder. "You are Rose Wilson, you are my daughter but this", his hand fell to touch the forehead of the mask. He paused a little, considering a name. "This is Ravager, and before we are done, entire armies will fall before you."

"I have no interest in armies" Rose said, looking down at the identity she would become. "I am loyal to you and you have a pressing matter to deal with." She looked with her eye into the sunlight, "my interest lies with the Teen Titans."

Slade smiled at that. "Come Ravager, we have work to do."


	21. The Flames of Love & War

Raven flew Rune out of harm's reach the Raven but was struggling to hold it. Usually when she ferried people they were calm and passive but Rune was in turmoil, struggling and resistant. She looked out across the harbour and realised she wouldn't be able to hold it for that long so let them down on the boardwalk above the beach. Rune spilled out messily and stumbled down to his knees. His back shook as Raven approached him. Raven circled him uncertainly, kneeling him down so his face pale, his eyes were hollow with shock. "She's with Slade" he said, staring blandly out past her. "She's his… his…"

"I know" Raven said sadly, "I heard."

"And I couldn't save her" Rune managed, breaking down again. He hated this feeling, this situation. But more than anything, he hated himself. The worst part was, through all of the things Rose screamed at him, he couldn't prove her wrong on any of them. Raven's hand on his back soon became a hug but Rune was beyond consolation at this point, his mind was too full of his past mistakes.

"It's not your fault" Raven told him. People were beginning to recognise the pair as they walked past and were stopping to watch. "There is nothing you could've done, you made your choices and she made hers, that was not your fault."

Rune knew it was the truth but he just couldn't feel good about it now, why did he have to feel this way? Why did a spectre of his past have to have this power over him? "Go" he told Raven quietly, recognising the amount of people that were watching. "I'll make my own way back when I'm ready."

Raven shifted uncomfortably but relented. "Okay" she said, "don't take too long."

Rune watched her leave as she took off, then flinched. _You're a liar, you're a killer, you murdered the one you love… _Rose's words echoed through his mind again. Rune watched Raven shrink as she flew father into the distance before he looked down and realised he was gripping his wrist so tightly it was almost beginning to hurt. _You're a liar, you're a killer, you murdered the one you love… _Rune shook his head angrily, he had been in these dark places before, he knew how to drown the voices out. Rubbing his wrists, he looked around before walking off, there had to be a bottle store around here somewhere.

* * *

It seemed so wrong to Raven how neutral everyone was after the fight Rune had been in but of course, none of them knew about it. Beast Boy had yawned and gone back to the TV, Robin was sitting quietly at his computer, Starfire was just finishing off lunch for them all and Cyborg was no doubt making tweaks to the T-Car, he always knew there was one bolt that needed to be a degree extra tighter or a tire that needed a little extra air pressure after every drive. Raven looked at them all, she had come in here planning to tell them what had happened but now as she looked around, she realised that it wasn't her secret to tell, she had to trust that Rune would tell them all when he was ready, he needed to now that Rose was an active enemy of the Titans, working for Slade. She would tell him that when she returned. In the meantime, she decided to go help Cyborg. She hadn't even stepped out of the elevator when he called out. "You're late, I parked up nearly ten minutes ago."

"I just got back" Raven offered, crossing the floor to look at what Cyborg was looking at. He had one of his fingers turned into a wrench and was hovering it over three bolts, unsure of where the problem lay. "What's the issue?"

"The engine's been a bit… bumpy lately in the old girl" Cyborg said dejectedly, "at first I thought it was just the engine mount needed fixing, a couple bolts and good as new again but it hasn't happened. Now there's this," he said, one of his fingers shining a light into an empty space.

"Something missing?" Raven asked.

"There shouldn't be this much space between the rocker arms and the engine" Cyborg explained, "that's what's causing the noise but I can't tell why."

"Maybe it's not the rocker arms that are the problem" Raven said, slipping into a problem-solving mindset, she enjoyed the opportunity to take her mind off all these massive problems at hand and get to something practical that she could fix with her hands. She narrowed her eyes at the rocker arms and looked across from them. "The T-Car operates with a hydraulic system right?"

"The best" Cyborg said, unsure of the new angle Raven was taking.

"Check the oil pressure" Raven told him, disassembling the engine in her mind as she homed in on the issue.

She thought Cyborg might object being given orders when it came to fixing his pride and joy but instead he burst into a smile, glad to see her without the weights he knew were on her mind. He slid underneath and there was a small moment as he removed the cap and attached his own socket. "It's all normal here" he called out.

"I think you need to check the lifters then" Raven told him, "if the oil pressure isn't to blame and the rocker arms have already been accounted for, then the only thing left is the hydraulic lifters just aren't working."

Cyborg came out and grinned. "You're a genius" he exclaimed, kissing her forehead before getting to work. Raven helped him remove the sockets and with a few rattles, Cyborg pried the first loose.

"Those don't look like they should be there" Raven remarked, noting the cracks.

Cyborg's face had drained of colour. "How long has that… I missed…"

Raven looked at him, trying to keep the smirk off her face. "I don't think you realised that cars weren't meant for jumping off cliffs."

This time it was Cyborg's turn to smile as he walked over to a large toolbox and produced spares. "Care for a car and she'll care for you, she just needs a band-aid every now and then.

Raven helped him to take out the old and damaged lifters and replace them with the new ones. It felt good to get grease on her hands and let off on her mind as she got stuck in back again. Eventually the repairs were made and Raven took a seat on the step.

Cyborg leant against the bench next to her. "So you and Rune have been making waves."

Raven rolled her eyes without looking at him. "You too huh?"

"Didn't take a genius to connect the dots after he and BB almost tore the place down" Cyborg said. "Mind telling me what brought it on?"

Raven gritted her teeth behind pursed lips. "Rune and I kissed, it was nothing."

"Right," Cyborg said, not particularly buying the story.

"And Beast Boy saw. He and Rune exchanged some words and things got heated."

"And then they got volcanic" Cyborg remarked. "I could've been fooled into thinking Beast Boy had gone back to his phase of being more beast than boy with Adonis again."

"Yeah well it's over now," Raven said, "they settled it."

"If you say so" Cyborg said but he didn't look convinced. "So where does that leave you and Rune?"

"We're… complicated" Raven mumbled feebly.

"Isn't it always?" Cyborg asked rhetorically, but not unkindly.

"I like him a lot… and he likes me" Raven explained, "but there's still secrets. Secrets that are coming to hurt us, all of us. Being with him is like being in the eye of a hurricane; when I'm with him I feel this peace in my chest that no one else has ever managed to give me but at the same time…"

"You're worried about all the destruction around you" Cyborg finished.

Raven nodded. "Rune is generous, or at least, he thinks of everyone before himself. But sometimes that's more out of an almost self-loathing rather than kindness, and that's not right, it's unsafe. Before he can love anyone, he needs to learn to love himself."

"Maybe he needs you to teach him that" Cyborg suggested softly.

Raven considered his words, then accepted the rag he handed her to wipe the grease off her hands and face. She took the elevator back up and finding that Rune hadn't returned yet, walked casually up to the roof. Raven looked over at Jump City with the wind gently brushing through her hair and somewhere in Jump City, Rune looked back. _Where are you Rune? _Raven thought wistfully, wishing she could talk to him now. She shouldn't have left him alone after his encounter with Rose. She would make it up to him, she promised herself before going back down to her room.

_I am where I belong _Rune thought as he finished off the bottle of scotch. It had been an odd sight for the owner of the liquor store to see a teenager, a Teen Titan no less, walk in seconds after opening hours had begun and buy a catalogue of hard spirits but he wasn't one to argue with the cash he was given. And so Rune drank under the pier, looking at the Tower that was supposed to be his home that he now felt so torn from. He needed to hunt for Rose, she was his responsibility, he was just as much to blame for the things she did now as much as Slade was. The boards creaked and shifted above him as people walked above, streams of sand and dust occasionally drifted down to settle in his hair or on his clothes. The waves rushed up to kiss the soles of his feet as the tide snuck higher, the sensation keeping Rune awake even as he slipped further into his drunken fervour. He watched one bottle get pulled away from him, light bounced off it as it drifted out with the slits of sunlight bouncing off it. It was beautiful Rune reflected, and then another memory of Rose would come crashing into his mind like the waves crashing into his feet, the thoughts as welcome as the cold's bite upon his feet. It was time to go before the rising waters trapped him underneath here and forced him into an icy swim. Rune stood up slowly, stumbling a little._You're a liar, you're a killer, you murdered the one you love… _Rune's face suddenly curled into a snarl and he swung his last bottle around, smashing it into one of the pier's columns where it shattered. Rune looked at the broken bottleneck in his hand and at the drink that was seeping into the greedy sand. It was probably for the best he imagined. Rune carefully pulled the pieces of glass out of his palm but didn't bother sealing it back up again. After everything his mind was still trying to process, it was nice to feel, even if all there was to feel was pain. Blood dripping from his palm, Rune walked away, already feeling himself sober and wiping his eyes as another perfect memory of Rose came under scrutiny from his mind. _You're a liar, you're a killer, you murdered the one you love! _Rune dropped to his knees with a cry, hands to his head. As Rose's scream continued to echo in his mind, Rune's memory threw up an image that his mind never wanted to see. He was back on the streets of Gotham again, his runes tingled on his skin the way they always did after they discharged energy.

_You're a liar…._

_It wasn't my fault _Rune whispered as he involuntarily drew closer, forced to watch as his body acted autonomously. The slim body was sprawled lifeless on the tarmac, arms stretched out, one leg lying over the other with the hips twisted. Her face was looking away from him.

_You're a killer…_

_No _Rune told himself, _please, don't show me this again. _He reached the body and knelt to the ground, feeling the crowd of criticising eyes watching him, passing judgment. His hand pressed against her neck as he ran a hand underneath to scoop her in his arms. There was no pulse, she was dead.

_You murdered the one you love. _

Rune had no more words as he cradled the lifeless body in his arms, he just let his tears out, hot tear streaks burning down his face. Her body seemed so delicate, so petite in his arms. He pulled his head up from her body, already colder then he remembered at looked at her face before the shock hit him. The face with a line of blood running down from her nose, was not Rose's, it was Raven's. Rune looked down in horror as he cradled Raven in his arms, her heart still, her body limp. The line of blood began to drip off the side of her face. Rune was transfixed, he couldn't stop looking, couldn't tear his eyes away. He eventually found his voice through the terror and screamed, holding her closer than he had ever held Rose, more unwilling to let her go than any other time he had relived this nightmare. The world flashed and Rune found himself again in the sand, his fists buried under the sand. Rune jumped back to his feet quickly and found himself looking at his runes with a sense of dread. What he had done was terrible but possibly what was still coming was even worse.

* * *

Raven would never show it but underneath, she was beginning to get worried. She hadn't seen Rune all day and it was beginning to dip into the evening, the sun beginning to impose upon the western horizon. Raven put down her book and walked towards the lounge. On her way, she found Beast Boy heading out. "Hey Garfield," Raven said, trying to sound casual, "do you know when Rune is getting back home?"

Beast Boy frowned, being called by his actual name was odd in itself, in addition to the question. "Rune got back over an hour ago" he said uncertainly to Raven.

Raven's eyes widened. "What?"

The shape shifter shrugged. "Yeah, he passed me in the corridor, went straight for his room. Didn't look like he was in a mood to be messed with. He okay?"

"That's what I'm about to find out" Raven said, turning with a flourish of her cloak, leaving Beast Boy to go back to looking for enough socks for his stankball. Raven forced herself to keep her pace at walk but nevertheless she could her her footsteps quickening. Why hadn't Rune come to her earlier? Why hadn't he ended her worrying? _It'll all be answered soon enough _she reasoned, turning the corner to see his room. She opened the door without knocking and peeked inside. The room was empty but she could hear the shower running. Based on the steam leaking out of the open doorway, she guessed it had been running for about the same time as Rune had returned to the tower. She reached the doorway and seeing the mirror fogged up with steam, took a step inside to see a sight that turned her insides cold. Rune was on his knees in the shower, fully dressed. Red tinged the water around him as it ran down into the drain and disappeared. Rune had one forearm stretched out in front of him, and with his other hand was desperately trying to cut at it with a razor blade only for the perpetually glowing red rune to seal it up instantaneously. Raven's eyes widened as she called out his name and stepped into the shower, throwing aside all cares for her cloak which quickly became drenched. She knelt down and grabbed his hand, forcing him to become still. She pulled his hand harder and twisted him round, forcing him to face he as he fell back to sit. Despite the hot water beating down on him, evidence of his tears was obvious. Raven took the razor from his hand and threw it behind her, looking back at Rune desperately trying to seek an answer for his actions.

Rune just shook his head lamely at her. "She was right about me" he told Raven.

Raven felt tears welling in her own eyes. She didn't speak but just wrapped Rune in her hug, feeling his arms wrap around her in reply. This was different from the embrace they had shared after their talk on the beach, that had been born out of want but the way they held each other now was need. The end half of Rune's sleeve hung off his arm at the elbow, the fabric shredded. Raven's cheek was pressed against his, her eyes firmly shut as one of hands pressed between his shoulder blades and the other against the back of his head. Rune's hands were spread, Raven could feel each of his fingers arched, holding her tight against his body, almost incapable of letting her go. Rune let every feeling of how much he needed Raven flow through the embrace, how he could never bear to lose her, not after everything already lost. His heart thumped in his chest as he remembered his vision. He would never let anyone hurt her. Rune had not been able to live up to a few things in his life but he swore that promise would not be among them.

Raven could feel her wet hair sticking to her face, her cloak was already heavy from all the water running through it. Minutes later, the hot water still running over both of them, Raven could feel herself heating up and slowly began to lean back, trying to find a position slightly removed before she became uncomfortably hot. Rune eventually loosened his arms but she didn't leave his embrace. She retracted her head, and rested it against his. "Everything will be okay" she whispered softly to him, with a voice he could listen to forever. "Just please don't punish yourself anymore, I can't take this."

"I never want to hurt you" Rune whispered back.

"Then don't hurt yourself" she told him back. As he nodded, she kissed him. It was soft, just her lips brushing against his, more to show the feeling behind it than the physical contact. Whatever the first one had meant though, whether spawned from the first, or the heat or the steam, their second kiss was not mistakable by the passion. Rune lifted his face from looking at the ground as Raven stroked his cheeks and closed her eyes, letting her lips travel the distance between them by faith. Her lips met his and she felt the desperate grip on her tighten. She knew this was the way she had always wanted to be held, the way Starfire wanted Robin to hold her, this need, the thought that this could be the last time he might ever hold her. Just from his actions alone it was made startlingly obvious to Raven how much Rune treasured her, and in her own chest blossomed a feeling of heat and happiness in a concoction that she couldn't quite name but was still intoxicated with. Her lips parted and her tongue reached down as she made the first move. She parted his lips easily and met his tongue halfway, exchanging the tastes of each other's tongues whilst the hot water kept showering upon them. Rune's legs had straightened through the gap between her legs as she knelt as she still held his face, stopping between kisses only to look in the eyes that mirrored her own and promise him that everything would be all right again. Her cape was heavy as it lay spread out behind her, the fabric soaked. Raven took her hand away from for the briefest of moments as she reached up to the clasp and with a deft movement, unbuckled it and it fell down to the ground. Rune stopped long enough for his eyes to drink in the gorgeous figure of her bodice before he looked back up to her again. "Are you sure?" He asked her. He knew the alcohol had worn off and he knew despite his state he was doing this for the right reasons, Raven meant everything to him now, there was nothing he wouldn't do for her but he didn't want to make her feel obligated to do anything.

Raven seemed to read all those thoughts in the blink of a mind's eye as she gave an understanding smile and pressed a finger to his lips. "Yes" she told him, keeping her voice serious yet soft. "I want this, I want you." She felt her feeling multiply with every word, she remembered fighting with a screaming disturbed teenager in the park so long ago but even then, there was some part of her that whispered he would mean so much more to her than she could imagine. "And about that I've never been more sure about anything."

Rune pulled her into another kiss, his hands running down her back down her spine to her hips and back up her sides. His digits took turns applying pressure before relaxing again on her back, like he was playing piano, the shifts between gentle and forceful was driving Raven crazy as her muscles hardened against him before they relaxed he struck again while she was weak. Rune pressed up against her and Raven shut off the shower, ending the torrent and forcing them to cling together tighter to keep the heat between them as they stood. Rune's hand drifted past her dripping leotard to the bare skin of her thigh and toughened. Raven's eyes snapped open as he suddenly lifted her up but her head fell back as he rested her pelvis against his, feeling the hardness beneath press through his clothes. Her legs wrapped around him with an iron strength as he walked out the bathroom, neither of them bothering to dry. He softly deposited her on the bed and crawled up quickly to be on top of her, her legs resuming their clutch. Her fingers ran through his hair as he traced her hairline with his thumb and supported himself with his other hand. Raven broke off the kiss with a smirk as one of her hands found his waistline and snuck underneath his shirt. Rune unconsciously tensed as Raven's hands slid over his abdominal muscles, keeping her absorbed in the glorious bliss. Rune moved to kiss her neck and Raven's back arched at the sensation she had craved since being given her first taste to it. The gasp she took must've pleased Rune because he kept there, just elevating her need even higher. Raven's hands clawed as her hands moved around his body as she aggressively yanked at his shirt, forcing him to break as she pulled it off him. As Rune looked down at her in the subdued sunlight pressing through the steamed window, Raven looked at him. His hardened muscles, the various scars including the claw marks on his shoulder, the tattoos and the runes that lay carved beneath them, her breath left her. She didn't see him as hot, though he most certainly was. Who Rune was was literally etched into his skin, you couldn't look at him without seeing that and Raven saw the man in the glow and knew this was more than just a fling, more than just a relationship. He was special, this was special, they were special. Rune leant down again to kiss her again, his groin brushed against hers and she took a sharp breath, flushing red. Rune took the opportunity to tantalise her, pushing again, this time with intent. Raven felt him press through between their clothes against her, feeling the heat spread from underneath her belly button. Rune pushed again and Raven almost screamed, how could someone torment her so pleasurably? She could feel the buds at the tips of her breasts pressing against the confines of her leotard. She pressed against him and rolled him over to be on top. As Rune watched, Raven reached back behind and slowly pulled down her zip. Rune watched silently, sensing this was something Raven wanted to do for both him and herself, this wasn't to be rushed. The zip reached her mid back and and its bottom. Raven reach up to her shoulders and pulled at the leotard, feeling it roll off her shoulders, below her collarbones and finally her breasts. Rune's eyes stayed looking into hers as she pulled her arms out of the sleeves and took a small breath, anticipation and nervousness rushed in almost as much as the oxygen. She nodded to Rune and he sat up to her. Her bare breasts pressed against his chest, her nipples rubbing against his bare hot skin and hardening even more so, yet Rune still kept his eyes looking into hers. Raven's heart felt like swelling further, _is this what Starfire feels for Robin? _Her mind asked.

_No _she told it in reply, taking Rune and tasting his lips again softly, _this is what I feel for Rune. _She mewled quietly as his fingers found her right nipple, soft fingers gently thumbing and brushing it, teasing and experimental. Her reaction was all he required as he pulled her back underneath him and his kisses began to trail lower. Raven became confused as suddenly as touches of his flesh left her, then she bit her lower lip hard as she felt the warm and wet roughness of his tongue on her flesh. Her fingers found his hair and gripped tightly as he teased, tasted and nipped at the flesh of her aching bud. His hand trailed down her side to settle on her hip, his finger tips poked underneath her leotard that was concealing the last and most precious part of her flesh. Raven's hand grabbed his and Rune flinched, afraid he'd gone too far but swallowed as she pushed it down with her own hand, gently kicking it off with her lithe legs. Rune took another swallow, she was naked underneath him, he could almost feel the heat and nervousness radiating of her flesh, and hoped he wasn't as obvious. This meant so much and he was hiding how afraid he was of screwing it all up. She helped shrug off his pants and the two held each other, both wanting what was next but neither wanting to rush, appearing too overeager. Pressing his hips against hers, Rune could finally feel her against him, the warmth of her body, the scent of her skin, the taste of her lips. It was all he had dreamed about and more.

"Please" she whispered and Rune obliged, positioning himself at her entrance. Raven's teeth pressed further into her bottom lip before Rune entered her and her back arched, her lips parted in a soundless cry of pleasure. Rune pushed himself as deep as he could go, feel Raven's walls ripple around him, hot and wet. Raven pulled him into another kiss but broke it off as she shifted uncomfortably.

"Are you all right?" Rune asked.

She nodded, "Just go slow."

Rune understood and started slow, retracting and gently pushing in centimetres at a time which soon grew to inches. The memories of the time Raven had fantasised about Rune seemed to come to life as she saw his stomach muscles rippling with every thrust. Rune thrusted hard and Raven's fingers became claws, digging into her skin as she involuntarily let go of a moan. Rune was only encouraged as he began to move faster again, teasing her with a intoxicating blend of speed and depth. Rune grunted as her fingers tightened and started to puncture the skin, the pain only heightening his pleasure, it was so hard not to lose his mind but he was still focussed on pleasuring Raven, not himself. Their breathing became faster and more ragged, clawing for oxygen as much as they clawed for each other. If the shower wasn't responsible for the steam pressing against the main window, they certainly were. The soft, delicate and measured approach had become a need, driven by lust and mad instinct. Rune drove deeper, the pleasure was so intense his limbs were almost beginning to become numb. He began to thrust into her harder with more intense and driven passion, breathing giving way to shallow gasps. Raven raised her hips as he thrusted, allowing him to envelop himself fully within her on each thrust, she almost felt on the edge of passing out from the bliss but she wouldn't, not yet, not when she was so close. Her small breasts bounced with every thrust. Rune felt it starting to itch as he thrusted with a desperate urgency. His jaw clenched, his stomach muscles tightened and he groaned her name. Raven tried to reach up to kiss him but fell back as she felt the ripples as his excitement overflowed and spilled. It was like she had been a cord, every kiss, touch and thrust had tightened and tightened her, stretching her to breaking point. As Rune reached his climax, the cord snapped. Raven's lips parted in a silent 'O' as her arms outstretched, grabbing fistfuls of the sheets as every muscle in her body tensed. The first wave slammed through her, wracking her body. The second wave she was unprepared for as it reverberated through her body to the tips of her fingers, making them fall limp. She convulsed at third, sending flares of pleasure fire off around Rune who was still buried deep inside her, engulfed in the same ecstasy. He took a few seconds to regain some sense of the world before he toppled over to lie on the bed beside her. The only audible sound was the two of them struggling to catch their breath as their chests rose and fell. After a moment of studying the ceiling, the two looked at each other and couldn't do anything except break out into a smile with short bursts of laughter between breathing. Raven smiled as Rune gave a chuckle, the happiness in him almost eclipsing the pleasure that had surged through his body moments ago. Raven silenced him as she rolled over and kissed him again, his breathless mouth filled again by her tongue as they wrestled against one another before necessity forced them apart again. Raven rolled to the edge of the bed, not wanting to know if the wet patch in the middle of Rune's bed was from the water of the shower they came in with, sweat or something more intimate. She took another breath and felt a few renegade hairs stuck to her forehead, knowing the second option was still in the running.

"I hope we don't have training this afternoon" Rune remarked, clearly following the same train of thought.

Raven covered her smile, even though she was facing away from him. She felt him reach over and trace her spine with his fingers. "You know what's the ironic thing?" She asked Rune.

"What?" He queried.

"We're going to need another shower" Raven told him, setting both of them into small stifled fits of laughter again.

* * *

It was past midnight when the first explosion erupted, though closely followed by the second. Rune bolted upright in bed breathing heavily. He watched the orange flowers bloom in the city over the water with horror on his face. "What's going on?"

Raven was already watching from the window. "The city's ablaze."

The team quickly convened in the lounge and set off with Beast Boy as the guard but on their way, Robin received a call. It was the commissioner. "There's been five explosions in total…"

"We know," Robin replied curtly, "we're already on our way."

"I wouldn't advise that" the commissioner said seriously.

Robin stopped, the other Titans halting at his lead. "Why?"

"These are the buildings that were attacked," the commissioner started. As he progressed down the list, the colour drained from Robin's face.

"Those are the buildings that we went to, that all turned out to be false alerts" Cyborg said.

"Not anymore" the commissioner said darkly, "and an anonymous source has streamed footage to the media of the Titans visiting all buildings hours before the bombings."

"Slade" Cyborg said quietly. Amongst the roars of the fires, the screams of grief and anguish from Jump City's citizens pierced through, crying out for a saviour, and answers.

"They think we did this" Rune said grimly, wondering how many people had died, were dying. The chemical warehouse alone would kill at least a hundred people once the gases began to leak.

"That's not true" Robin said angrily.

"And I believe that but how many others will?" The commissioner asked. When Robin didn't reply he sighed. "Make no mistake, Jump City is burning but tonight, so are the Teen Titans."

* * *

_What a mess _Red X thought as he surveyed the city from his window. The sun was still hours from coming up. The screams of sirens would no doubt be annoying him to no end all night, not to mention all morning. He'd actually been out scoping a high end retailer for a potential heist when one of the bombs had blown in the next block over, it had almost seared his cape. He'd recovered a few pieces of the bomb and retreated back to his penthouse, the handiwork was undoubted Slade's, the burnt out fragments were sitting on Red X's coffee table. He turned away and looked at the TV, every station was playing either news of the event or displaying the civil defence message. Red X's eyes narrowed on the footage, watching as the screen broke into five segments displaying the Titans leaving each of the buildings. His lip curled in a ruthless smile, Slade had played everyone like a harp, there was nothing like the knee-jerk reaction of a public backlash to drown all semblance of logical, rational argument. It was brilliant, and it also provided him with an opportunity. He picked the communicator off his belt and opened a channel. "Wally, you were right" he said, putting on a false tone of humility that Kid Flash would believe, "what's happening, it has to stop, we need to stop this before it gets worse, before anyone else gets hurt." His white canine teeth were exposed by his wolfish smile, "we take down the Teen Titans. Tomorrow night."


	22. The Storm Gathers

It was a slow morning for the Titans as the sun rose. No one was sure when Robin slept that night, or if he did at all, he was just at the lounge window watching the smoke rise when the first person walked in that sombre next morning. The city burned most of the night, and it was only until the just before the sun brightened the horizon before last of the blaze was put out. Robin had noticed that the police boats the commissioner had deployed the previous day were still in place and called him up on that. "They're for your protection."

"But the threat from Slade is over" Robin replied confusedly.

"It's not Slade they're there to be protect you from" the commissioner replied grimly.

Surely enough, as if brought about by the words of a dark prophet, the grief and despair turned to anger against the team. Rune could spot crowds of people gathering at the boardwalk and waterfront, unintelligible screams and jeers carried across the water. The total death count was still being tallied but the chemical warehouse alone was responsible for nearly a hundred fatalities thanks to strong winds, including a packed bus that had only been in the area because it had gotten a flat tyre. A dozen of its passengers had been children. The sky was dark all day, the sun never came close to break through the smothering hold. "This cloud is bringing me down" Beast Boy moaned.

Everyone looked at each other, wondering who would tell him. "That's not a cloud" Cyborg said quietly, "that's smoke."

The silence resumed again as the entire group sat apart in the lounge, no one doing anything in particular. Starfire poked at some of her food in the kitchen, watching it wobble minutely, Cyborg and Beast Boy were on opposite sides of the couch, though Beast Boy was lying on his back. Robin was standing stiffly at the window, narrow eyes taking in every detail that could be seen from the Tower. Rune was sitting against the bench of the kitchen and Raven was leaning against the wall slightly removed from Cyborg's side of the couch, a small steaming cup of tea warming her slender fingers. "What are we going to do?" Asked Rune, "we can't let this go unchallenged."

"I agree" Starfire added, "we cannot let innocents bear the brunt of Slade's plan."

"This was Slade's plan" Robin said, turning away from the window. "He wanted the city against us all along."

"So what's our move?" Cyborg asked. "Do we go after Slade or do we try and get the city back on our side first?"

"Both," Robin replied, "Slade's greatest asset is his secrecy, most people have never even heard his name, let alone know what he is. We prove this was Slade and nail him publicly, put him on display for the whole world to see, that's how we win."

"All great in theory but Slade's a shadow," Raven contributed, "we don't know where he is, what he's planning, we might as well be chasing after a ghost story."

"Okay, so how exactly are we supposed to catch a ghost?" Beast Boy asked.

"We bring him to us" Robin said.

Rune was the first to grasp his idea. "The last gem of the Ascendence trio, you want to lure him into a trap."

"And finally have a fight on our terms" Robin agreed.

"It's risky" Cyborg said, "if Slade gets away then that's it, he gets the whole trio and.."

"We're history" Beast Boy finished.

"Then we better make sure we don't fail" Robin said, wrapping a hand around his fist. "Not again."

"He's not going to have his flaming monster army backing him up again will he?" Beast Boy asked.

"No" replied Raven flatly. Beast Boy wiped his forehead in a satirical sigh of relief. "But he does have a partner." Everyone looked up at that, everyone except Rune. He knew the team had to be told, but that never made it any easier.

"Someone's working with Slade?" Robin asked, "how do you know?"

"Because she attacked Rune" Raven said, trying not to give away the intimate details of Rose but minimise the amount Rune would have to say. "Her name's Rose Wilson, she's Slade's daughter."

"How do you know all this?" Cyborg asked.

"Because I knew her" Rune answered, speaking up but eyes low. "Before I met you, before the runes, before Darkside and Trigon. Slade distanced himself from her but a few years ago became her mentor, I thought she was dead. She is incredibly dangerous, extremely skilled and won't hesitate to kill. She's fanatically loyal to Slade," Rune's voice dropped lower, "I don't think there's anything she wouldn't do for him."

"Will she be a problem?" Robin asked.

"Of course" Rune replied, "she's been trained by Slade, she's not going to be just some robot minion we smash by the dozen."

"That's not what I meant" Robin said.

Rune fell silent for a second before looking at Robin in the eyes. "She will not" he told him, "my place is here."

"Good to hear" Robin said, "we'd better get to work. If we're going to invite Slade to our home, we'd better make our defences unlike anything he's ever seen."

"Oh yeah" Cyborg grinned, one of his fingers sliding back to reveal a blowtorch. "Upgrade time."

The team got busy, Robin and Cyborg built traps with Starfire and Beast Boy good for heavy lifting while Raven placed incantations for magical defences and Rune helped with her. They made quick work, and to their surprise, Robin gave everyone the afternoon for some personal time, save himself and Cyborg who were determined to run more calibrations and diagnostics on the additional security measures. Raven and Rune didn't really know what to do with themselves, so they decided to act on Rune's halfhearted suggestion to go to another poetry reading. They took one of Robin's civilian bikes, preferring not to advertise their identities to the city. The woman at the front gave them both a long stare before consenting and allowing them to go into the basement. The pair took places at the only table left, in the middle and Raven raised two fingers for their tea. The room was more full than it usually was. Raven listened to the poem being read, trying to fall back into her comforted atmosphere but found it impossible, shifting awkwardly on the cushion. She watched as the reader finished the poem and shuffled awkwardly off the stage when she felt it. Something was wrong, the tea wasn't being brought, or even made for them at all. She looked around the room at the extra company and found them staring back. They weren't here for poetry, they were here for revenge. The first man took a step towards them when Rune, who had noticed the same things, reacted. He grasped the lip of the table and flipped it up, kicking the bottom and sending it flying across the room into the man and three of his friends. There were screams as innocent bystanders scrambled out of the way as Rune jumped to his feet, hearing the next one come up from behind him. Rune turned and slammed him down with a solid punch to the jaw. One man tried to get up as Rune crossed the room and kicked a table. As the cups flew up off the surface, Rune kicked one out of the air where it shattered against the man's face, scalding him with tea. "Rune!" Raven shouted.

Rune paused, still his fighting stance as he eyed up two more men and one woman who had pulled out a screwdriver.

"We're leaving" Raven told him, dropping the pair she had immobilised in bindings of energy. Rune paused for a second, eyeing up the three he had designated to neutralise next before he consented and relaxed. The pair promptly walked out, Rune staring down anyone that dared meet his eyes. Raven followed him and stopped for a second as she passed the old woman, laying down a wad of notes on the counter. "For your troubles" she told the woman, "and the tea."

The pair were quiet as they returned to the tower, ignoring Robin's query of why they had come home so early and asking in reply what else they could do to help. The day was hard work but the progress was definite as they proceeded to cover the entire tower, inside and out, reinforcing the entrances and turning the tower into a fortress. It wasn't just the tower they were preparing for war Robin reflected as he studied the faces of his team, they were mentally getting ready for it as well. It was time to meet Slade head-on, and his new apprentice too. Robin looked down and realised he had been clenching his fist as a rumble of thunder rolled through the heavens, a storm was coming.

* * *

Wally sat beside Jinx's bed, playfully feeding her plastic spoonfuls of jelly, occasionally teasing her with it and eating it himself. He was still wearing his Kid Flash suit, the mask pulled back off his head. He didn't say so but he almost needed the nutrition more than she did, he had spent most of the night whipping in and out of buildings saving people, trying to be faster than the flames. He had been too slow too many times tonight and he knew his dreams would haunt him for a while to come now. Jinx's shoulder was still heavily bandaged and she had only begun physiotherapy but the results were promising. She giggled as she caught the jelly and sucked it slowly off the spoon, staring teasingly at Wally as she did so.

Wally gave her a tired smile, "if you keep doing that I might have to join you in that bed" he warned her cheekily.

She giggled and flashed those cat eyes of hers again. "What if the nurse came in? I don't think she'd appreciate that."

Wally grinned, "I'm Kid Flash, being quick is what I do."

Jinx smirked at that, "you've gotten slower since I first met you, or at least you take longer to finish anyway."

Wally chuckled at that then checked the rations pack on his wrist. He sighed as emptiness greeted him, he was running on fumes as it was.

Jinx's eyes took a softer approach, "you need to get some rest, you've been running all night."

Wally nodded, "don't I know it, but I can wait until a bit later." He wrapped her hands in his, she loved the warmth he gave off. "What's the point of saving anyone if I don't have you to come back to?"

Jinx smiled, her cheeks going red. "I'll be fine" she said softly, "get some…" Wally had rested his head against their hands and was asleep before she had even finished her sentence. She smiled at him, his wild red mop of hair that stood straight up tickled up her wrist. Wally's shoulders gently rose and fell as he quietly slept but the shrill buzz of his communicator suddenly cut into the moment.

Wally's tired eyes snapped open again as he jumped up and pulled a black communicator off his belt. "Yeah?" He asked, pressing it to his hear.

Jinx could hear a short unintelligible line of speech from the communicator.

"I'm on my way" he replied, and Jinx closed her eyes, sad that he had to leave again. But that was the life of a hero. A life she signed on for and had already been brutally reminded that it wasn't a life she could escape. "I need to go" Wally told her, turning around. Jinx just nodded and Wally pressed his lips to hers before disappearing in a streak of yellow and red. Jinx watched out the window as he zipped out onto the street before she lost sight of him again, sighing as she waited until her next therapy session.

* * *

Hot Spot had long finished helping the fire department siphon off the flames for burning buildings and was walking around in his normal form. With all the anger towards the Titans, displaying his status as a metahuman by walking as his flaming self was not advisable. The streets were dirty, a thin layer of smoke and dust had blackened the walls and paths and roads. A buzz on his belt made him look down, the red 'X' on his communicator was flashing. Hot Spot didn't need to acknowledge it, he knew what it meant. He swallowed his doubts and made sure he was alone before checking the coordinates of where they were supposed to meet. Hot Spot flexed his fist as his skin turned yellow and red. He pushed a column of flame into the ground and took off, a blazing yellow rocket quickly shrouded by the smoke of the flames of the war of the Titans. Beneath the streets, Aqualad surged through on a wave, having been below to relay more water through the fire hydrants in the districts where the firefighters had needed it most, similarly on his way. Wildebeest was running by rooftop, he had been forced to hide in the shadows initially but had been allowed to help with the clearing of rubble. One of Slade's bombs had gone off at the prison, breaking out most of the general population which were proving troublesome to round up. Thankfully the specialised wing designed to hold the super criminals was relatively undamaged, and all prisoners there had been accounted for, though Wildebeest had made sure to check on his way through.

Red X looked around at the figure in his bed. "Let's go babe, we don't want to keep them waiting."

Argent sighed as she ran her fingers over the Egyptian cotton sheets. "I think they would forgive us if we gave them five more minutes."

"Five minutes with you?" Red X asked, "we've already spent the best part of five days, though not all of it was in bed."

Argent gave him a seductive smile. "I'm going to get goosebumps every time I take a shower because of you."

Red X chuckled, it sounded even cockier in his human voice as he drew closer to her. "Don't I know it."

Argent sighed as she traced a finger down his chest, his suit now obscuring where tough and toned muscle used to lay bare. "Well I suppose you better make this up to me later" she said, throwing back the sheets. Red X showed no reaction but Argent knew he was enjoying the show she was teasing him with as his eyes drunk in the curves of her body. As she stood up and pulled up the first of her clothes, he stepped up behind her and kissed her neck, taking another breath of her scent. "With interest" she added in his ear, pulling on her top that left her belly button piercing exposed. She gave her renegade paramour one last kiss before he smothered his black hair by pulling his mask down and his voice became artificial.

"All right babe, let's go make Zippy's quest not a total failure."

"Sure we can't take an extra five minutes?" She asked sweetly.

"Not tonight girly" Red X replied. "Tonight we have work to do." He turned with a flourish of his cape and dived off the balcony, Argent flying out after him. Red X tucked himself in tight as he rocketed past the blurring windows of the building. Argent was starting to wonder wildly when Red X was going to pull out when he fired off a grappling gun and swung away, passing millimetres in front of a bus. She heard the screeching of brakes and the blast of horns as they flew down the street, then she heard a snigger of his laughter.

"You're crazy!" She screamed at him and he only laughed louder. In minutes, the entire team had met up on top of the industrial building Red X had chosen, Aqualad was last as he rose up to the roof atop a twisting column of water. Wildebeest snorted at the entrance.

"We're here" Wally said, he sounded like he was barely containing himself but Red X could see it was just an attitude to cover up his nervousness. Red X could see similar ploys by everyone in the group, Aqualad kept scratching his wrists and Hot Spot was constantly tugging on his sleeves. "What's the plan?"

Red X watched them all closely, they were still Titans and he didn't trust them one bit. Red rolled a ball out from his belt along the ground. The ball paused before a blue eye opened and lit up the air between the group with a holographic map of the bay with Titan's Island. "The police has maintained a presence blockading anything from getting to the island" he said, pointing to the small blue miniaturisations. "We'll need to get them out of the way before we can deal with the Titans."

"Let me worry about that" Aqualad said in a low voice.

Red X nodded then went back to the depiction which had zoomed in on the island. "Next is the beach. They have a security response system in place on the beach, it's activated by heat sensors, we're gonna need you to blind them Hothead."

"It's 'Hot Spot'" the flaming team mate grumbled. "How do you know so much about the Titan's defences anyway?"

"This won't be the first time I've broken into the tower" Red X replied, his grin almost audible. "First time with a team though, so we're going to need to do things a little differently." When no one questioned him, he continued. "Next is the door, which if the Titans haven't caught onto us at that point, I'll get us through the door quietly. If they have and subtlety won't serve us anymore, Horns over here can just knock it down."

Wildebeest snorted a breath and thumped his chest with a fist.

"What's my job?" Kid Flash asked.

"If we lose the element of surprise, we're going to need to hit them as fast as possible" Red X explained. "How many times could you hit a Titan before they have the chance to blink?"

Kid Flash gave a wicked grin, "Robin would be unconscious before-"

"No" Red X cut in, "Robin is mine, you leave him to me."

Kid Flash looked like he was going to argue for a moment but relented and nodded his acknowledgment.

"And where do you want me?" Argent asked in a tone that the others missed but made Red X grin.

"You're guarding the most important place" he told her.

Argent looked confused. "Where?" She asked.

"My back" Red X replied. She nodded in silent affirmation and Red X looked out past them all to Titans Tower, silently staunch amongst the waves. "Let's kick some ass."

* * *

The scrape of the whetstone pierced Ravager's ears as Slade sharpened a sword to perfection. He held it up and examined it, turning the blade over before lowering it again, and resuming the scrapes. "Why can't I join you?" She asked impatiently.

"Because you would be unnecessary" Slade replied simply, not taking his eyes off his work. They had had this conversation four times already but Ravager was desperate to meet the Titans in battle, to have a chance to properly prove to her father what she could do. "You are not needed for what I must do tonight."

"But you said it yourself; it's a trap" Ravager protested.

"Of that I have no doubt" Slade agreed, "and quite a cleverly concealed one. But not clever enough for me. I will outmatch the Titans tonight and retrieve the last of the Ascendence trio. They will be no match for me."

"So you're leaving me to babysit while you get to have all the fun?" Ravager asked.

"The two gems we do have must be guarded with the utmost urgency" Slade told her, standing up and coating the sword in its sheath. "If they are lost tonight, then everything we have worked for will have been for nothing."

"Assuming someone can actually get in" Ravager sighed in derision, "which is so impossible that no one save you could achieve it."

"No" Slade said, "there is another, and he is in Jump City. That is why I need you to stay here."

"Send me after him then" Ravager begged, desperate to do anything. "Anything".

"Here" Slade said, holding out his hand. Inside it was a small blue ball. "Continue your practicing."

"My vision is perfect" Ravager growled. It was true, despite removing her eye she not fallen prey to any of the shortcomings of being monocular.

"Practice regardless" Slade ordered. Ravager growled but took the ball from his hands. "Wait here until I return. If I do not make contact before sunrise tomorrow, you know the appropriate procedure. What time is sunrise?"

"6:09 AM" Ravager answered instantly.

"Good" Slade said, eyeing his apprentice. She did not return it, staring only straight forward. He reached out and cupped her face softly, making her look at him. "You will have your fight with the Titans soon" he promised, "and you will bathe Jump City with their blood." He extended his arm, his sword in hand.

Ravager looked at it, then looked at him incredulously. Slade nodded and she took the sword from his hands, removing the sheath and testing the perfect weight. "You're giving this to me?"

Slade nodded, "consider it a gift, from master to apprentice. The mission will require stealth, the sword will do me no good inside Titans Tower. When you meet them, I hope you take as much pleasure eliminating them as I will knowing that you were the one to strike them down."

Ravager returned it the sheath and nodded, "I will, Father. Thank you."

"Practice" Slade told her, pointing at the ball. He then walked away into shadows, disappearing without a whisper. Ravager waited for a moment, then fastened the sword over her shoulder down her back before throwing the ball against the wall and catching it, then repeating.

* * *

Robin's eyes narrowed as he twisted the last screw and looked in satisfaction as the laser grid activated and then sunk below to infrared level in the spectrum, effectively rendering it invisible. He walked back to where Cyborg was hooked into the tower's computers, acting as a direct interface for the sensors' findings. The Boy Wonder examined the rest of his team, Beast Boy was low to the floor as a bloodhound, nose twitching with each sniff. Starfire armoured herself, her arms were sleeved and legs similarly covered. Rune's outfit now boasted short sleeves which had revealed a number of his runes, Robin raised his eyebrows at the right sleeve which looked like it had been torn to shreds to make it shorter but didn't question it.

"Are we ready?" He asked.

"All security systems are powered up and fully functional" Cyborg replied.

"I've placed a few wards where I can" Raven reported.

"We are prepared for the forthcoming battle Robin" Starfire said, floating a little way in front of Raven and Rune.

"Beast Boy's uh, smelling stuff" Rune offered, gesturing towards the dog.

Robin moved closer to him. "And the gem?"

"Moved up to the platform, the vault has been reinforced and the lock scrambled," Rune said in a quiet voice. "That should hold him back looking in the wrong place whilst the gem gets out."

"Transport?"

"I reached out to the contact you suggested" Rune said, "I don't know what kind of leverage you have over Wayne Enterprises to get them to send a chopper in the middle of the night but it'll be here. Will we really give them the gem?"

"It depends on how the fight is going" Robin replied, "We can trust them to ferry the real one to a safe location if we begin to lose the tower but if the fight goes well, I have a dud in place that I'll swap in for the real one and we'll ship it out regardless."

Rune nodded and Robin left him for Beast Boy. The waiting was making his heart hammer in his chest, not knowing when Slade was going to come for them. Robin finish the brief exchange and looked around. "We are indeed ready for the forthcoming battle" Starfire summed up.

Robin nodded, "I hope so, if we lose here…"

"History" Beast Boy finished.

Robin nodded glumly but his expression became softer when Starfire moved across the room and they held each other for a moment. As they kissed, Raven's hand found Rune's and gave it a small squeeze. A rumble of thunder from the storm broke the silence, followed by a crack of lightning that lit up the room. Rune took a deep breath, knowing what it meant. Slade was coming, and destruction closely in his wake.

* * *

Aqualad cut through the water with ease, twisting in and out of the various obstacles in his path. He passed under the ominous quiet hulls of the police boats above and waved his arms, feeling the currents twist and shift at his command. Aqualad's body rippled as he felt the strength of the waters at his command solidify, then sent them up. The ships almost threatened to be upended as the waters shunted them to the sides, the spotlights that were monitoring the skies and waters shining away as crew members grabbed for anything to hold themselves steady with. In the confusion as the ships steadied and the police looked for the wave that had snuck up on them, nobody noticed the red disc of energy that ferried across three honorary Titans and a vigilante cut across the sky above them. Argent set it down as Wildebeest and Red X crouched down. A line of waves was thrown up as Kid Flash zipped over the water and skidded to a stop beside them, Aqualad emerging from the sea a few seconds later. "Long range defences are blind" he reported, pulling up his goggles.

"Good" Red X muttered. "Hothead?"

"It's 'Hot Spot'" the Moroccan muttered in an annoyed tone as he lit up his body in flame. He cast a ball of fire into both his hands and joined them as he blasted with a torrent of flame that went around almost half the island.

"Nice" Red X commented, "let's move." The six silhouettes sprinted up the hill towards the tower, silent and determined.

Up in the tower, Cyborg flinched. "What's wrong?" Robin instantly asked, seeing the movement.

"Half the heat sensors on the entire eastern shore just went down" Cyborg told him. "The remainder registered a spike nearly off the scale."

Robin ran to the opposite window and had his attention instantly captured by the police boats in the harbour, still clamouring to wrest their boats back into position after being so far shunted out of place. "It's Slade" he growled, "he's clearing a path."

Cyborg pulled out the wires that linked into his body. "I can still tap into the system remotely, I'll go sweep the lower levels."

Robin nodded, "take Rune with you. Be careful."

Rune looked at Raven and sadly pulled his hand from her embrace as he left her. Cyborg activated the light on his shoulder and the pair left the room together. Robin checked the communications channel, it was still operating as normal. It was all like Slade had said before, _moves and countermoves_, like a chessboard. The board was set, the pieces were moving. Robin gritted his teeth, _where are you Slade?_ _What's your move?_

* * *

"Knock knock" Red X muttered as he crossed the last of the wires.

"Is it done?" Wildebeest grunted, looking around.

"Not yet" Red X replied, annoyed at the door's insistence on remaining closed. "There's an electromagnetic…"

Wildebeest cut him off as he charged through the door and took the entire fixture out of the wall. "Lucky I disabled the security system first" Red X muttered, "though the sight will be hard to miss. Not to mention the sound." Wildebeest flared his nostrils threateningly and Red X raised his hands in casual submission. Hot Spot took two steps inside and raised his palm, feeling the heat signatures in the air. "Two heat sources headed this way and they're coming fast" he told them.

Red X turned to Wildebeest, "you want to hit someone? Be my guest." Wildebeest grunted his dismissal and walked into the tower, cracking his knuckles. "I asked how many hits you could give someone before they blinked," Red X said to Kid Flash, "find out."

Wally lowered his goggles and raced off. Red X looked to the rest; Hot Spot, Aqualad and Argent. "Let's get moving" he told the other three. "There's going to be a lot of tricks and traps between here and the top floor."

* * *

Cyborg and Rune ran, hearing the explosion and tearing sound. "Sensors are registering structural damage, someone's torn a hole in the tower!"

"Hasn't Slade ever heard of knocking?" Rune asked in reply as he kept his breath even. The two matched each other in speed until a blur of red and yellow flew past and Rune disappeared before he could even make a noise.

Cyborg stopped and turned, sonic cannon already charged but there was nothing as he aimed. The hallway behind him was empty, Rune had just vanished. Cyborg tapped into his communications and opened a channel back to Robin. "Report!" Robin barked.

"Rune's gone!" Cyborg replied, shining his light down two branching corridors, cannon still ready.

"What do you mean 'gone'?" Robin asked.

"I mean he's MIA, someone or something took him, I don't think Slade is here alone!" Cyborg replied, unsure of whether he should begin searching for Rune or continue onto the the breach. A shadow made him turn around as Wildebeest suddenly towered above him, arm drawn back. "What are you…"

Cyborg's grunt of pain was the last thing Robin heard through the radio before it became unresponsive. He quickly opened another channel. "Cyborg!?" He yelled.

There was no reply.

"Rune!?"

More static.

Robin gritted his teeth as he turned away rom the computer and looked to his three remaining compatriots. They looked nervous, uncertain and afraid. "We gotta go after Cyborg!" Beast Boy cried.

Robin felt his gut turn cold. "No" he said with steel in his voice, summoning on the mentality he always believed his mentor carried. "That's what Slade wants, take them to draw us away from where we're strongest, then strike while we're exposed. We stick to the plan."

"And Rune and Cyborg?" Starfire asked worriedly.

Rune looked away, not wanting to show the doubt and dislike in his next statement. "We hope they're okay, and that they can handle whatever Slade's throwing at them below."

There was an explosion and the room quaked. "Like, what was that?!" Beast Boy cried.

"One of my more desperate traps" Robin said, moving back to the computer. "Internal surveillance is down, I can't tell whether it worked or not."

"Do you want us to go down?" Starfire asked.

"No" Robin said, shaking his head. "We won't make that mistake again. We stay here. We get ready for a fight.

_Slade is going to regret coming here _Raven vowed.

* * *

Hot Spot held his hands out and the flames from the explosion kept at bay at his command. Aqualad motioned and a water pipe in the wall burst, killing the flames in front of them. Red X never broke his stride as he passed the latest of Robin's exploding tricks, save to hold Argent's hand as she stumbled over a piece of rubble. Red X rounded the next corner and fired two X's from his palms. There was a series of nerve darts fired as they tripped the motion sensors, shooting into empty air. _Predictable _Red X thought as he chuckled but the laugh died in his throat as he heard the detonator begin to warm up. "Everybody stop" he commanded. He slowly reached up to his mask and pressed in at his temple, watching his vision change through the mask. He cycled through them all before stopping at infrared and his heart skipped a beat. "Fuck" he muttered, the nerve darts hadn't been trap at all, only a distraction. Robin had planted a laser grid. Red X looked at the labyrinth before him before seeing the one laser that had been broken, it was pointing at Argent's thigh. "Babe, don't move a muscle" he told her.

"What's wrong?" She asked, alert.

"There's a broken laser on your thigh, if it reconnects then I would assume there would be a very large explosion" Red X replied calmly, assessing it.

"Oh joy" Argent said sarcastically as the pair behind them exchanged an uttering of "shit."

Red X adjusted the scanner before he located the panel behind which he would find the trigger. The only problem being it was behind a rather complex laser grid, of whose design Red X had no doubt. Red X ducked the first, shimmied under next and raised himself on one hand to vault over three with flawless gymnastic skill. Despite being terrified, Argent couldn't help but be impressed with Red X's serpentine skill as his body seemed to flow like water wherever he wanted it to go. After weaving his way through, Red X moved the panel and surveyed what he was dealing with. "Robin, you crafty son of a bitch." The Boy Wonder had built in a timer as well as the motion-activated trigger of the bomb, where he had learnt a trick like that Red X would have paid to find out. It was almost a compliment that Robin was taking this so seriously though. Red X quickly assessed the bomb and then realised that this bomb had been completely custom built, there was no sense to the layout at all. The timer told him he had less than a minute. Red X looked back to where Aqualad was busy gathering water and Hot Spot was preparing for the onslaught of fire. Red X grimly realised that there was no way Argent would survive this explosion. Red X gritted his teeth as he looked back and realised he had wasted time looking at her, he now had less than twenty seconds. Red X hadn't felt his heart beat hard in his chest for a long time but now it was starting to hammer the inside of his ribs. _Twelve seconds…_ Red X surveyed his options and swore again. Why didn't this design make any sense?! _Six seconds. _Red X swore again, picked the wire that was his favourite colour and yanked. The clock froze on 2.79 seconds before the laser grid died around them. "We're good" the vigilante called and his team walked cautiously through.

"That was closer than I'd have liked" Argent complained to him, a trickle of sweat had dampened her usually-perfect hair.

Red X swatted dismissively at the air, "piece of cake, nothing I haven't defused a hundred times before" he said cooly.

"Well next time do it a hundred times quicker if you don't mind" she told him. Red X watched her go and felt the bead of sweat press against the inside of his mask before following. They came to a main door and Red X held up a hand before placing a hand to the wall. His fingertips buzzed against the wall as his eyes momentarily glazed red, giving him a glimpse of what lay inside. "We have four bodies inside, looking very ready to go, one for each of us" he told the group. "Are you ready for this?"

"Let's find out" Aqualad replied as Red X pushed the entry button.

The door slid open and Robin's jaw dropped as four teens strode in. "Red X?" Then he noticed who was backing him up. "Hot Spot, Aqualad, Argent?" He asked in disbelief. "You're all Titans, why are you helping him break into our tower?" Behind him, Robin could hear exclamations of shock and surprise from his team.

"It's quite simple Robin" Red X replied, "I'm working for the good guys now, and we all have come together to solve a common problem, namely you."

"Us?" Robin repeated disbelievingly.

"Jump City has been the victim ever since you reignited your war with Slade" Red X told them, "we came together to save it, from you."

"Red X said he wanted to stop us for a good cause and you believed him? You followed him?" Robin appealed to the Titans standing at Red X's back.

They all stood fixed to the spot, staring back unblinkingly. "He didn't lie" Hot Spot finally said.

Robin felt as if he'd been stabbed by a dagger of ice. He'd been betrayed by his friends, people he cared about, he would've dropped everything to come to their aid if they asked for it. Instead they were here to shut him and his team down, accusing them of hurting the very city they had always tried to protect. "Rune and Cyborg, are they okay?" He asked.

"Not sure" Red X replied, "Cyborg was looking a little pained when he met Wildebeest and as for Rune? I think our red-headed speedster has got him quite well occupied."

"What?" Robin asked, shocked. "Kid Flash is with you too?"

Argent nodded, "he brought us together, this was all his idea."

Robin couldn't believe it, he had known Wally for years, they had fought side by side so many times for so many years. How could one of his best friends have stabbed him in the back like this? Why had all of this happened? His face contorted into an expression of pain and anger. He reached to his back and extended his bo staff. Behind him, Starfire and Raven levitated up into the air, their eyes glowing with power. Beast Boy shuddered for a moment before he became his werebeast form, his teeth extended with rage as his conscious fought to keep control. Across at the other end of the room, Argent and Hot Spot rose, Aqualad dropped into a fighting stance. Robin tried to bore through Red X's skull with his stare but that would only do so much, and a bo staff would feel so much better. Slade was but a distant thought in his mind, all that Robin could think about was taking back his tower, saving his friends and proving to Jump City who the real heroes were once again. There was just one thing in his way.

"TITANS!" Robin and Red X roared, "GO!"


	23. War of the Titans

Rune gritted his teeth as he groaned in pain. He pushed himself back up to one knee before the blur raced past and punched in him in the jaw, sending him falling back down to the ground again. Rune grunted as a yellow speedster stopped in front of him. Rune wiped a line of blood from his lip and grunted as he got back up to one knee. "Man" Wally said, shaking his hand. "You just don't stay down do you?"

Rune spat on the floor as he forced himself back up. "You have no idea" he grunted.

Kid Flash shook his head, "stay down Rune, you're too slow to win."

Rune shook his head as a light blue rune lit up. Kid Flash ran at him but Rune's hand had already hit the ground and a sheet of ice blossomed. Wally's first step slid across the floor and he flew over Rune and crashed in a heap against the wall. "Being quick applies to more than just your legs" Rune told him before retreating. It wouldn't be long before Kid Flash recovered, Rune had to run. Rune left the speedster and began sprinting with what stamina he had left, a very particular destination set in his mind. He kept making turns, giving himself that much more time before when Kid Flash recovered and when he would find Rune. Rune made it two thirds of the way before he heard the sound of Kid Flash's running and stopped, the scarlet speedster came to a halt in front of him. Rune reached out to press the wall, watching Wally eye him up for any more traps. "I take it you didn't appreciate the ice?" Rune asked.

"It only slowed me down" Wally replied, "but I've got speed to burn."

"We're all burning tonight" Rune remarked, then as Kid Flash charged Rune activated the mark he had branded into the wall. Wally slammed into the energy wall and was thrown back. He looked up as a line of blood trickled from his nose before he got up and disappeared as he ran the other way looking for a way round. Rune grunted in satisfaction as he examined the rune he had marked in the wall when they had fortified the tower before running, he had to lose Kid Flash to stand a chance of getting back up to where the main fight was raging. He just hoped Raven and the others could hold on. Rune managed to make it up two floors before Kid Flash slammed feet first into his back. Rune went flying and hit the ground hard. He looked up to see his bedroom door in front of him, his name is bold black letters looking down. Rune looked back at Kid Flash, it was almost a struggle to get back up as he felt the bruises tightening on his back. Rune leant against the wall for support and the door slid open suddenly. Rune and Wally made eye contact before Rune dived inside his room for cover and Kid Flash charged, slamming into his legs. Rune yelled as the world flipped as he spun around before hitting the ground again. Rune groaned, he couldn't keep getting back up forever, or even much longer, this was more pain then even he could take. Rune dragged himself away as he tried to get feeling back in his legs, they had gone numb from the impact. Kid Flash ran back and stopped in Rune's doorway, they could both the feel the end of the fight was upon them. Rune stopped crawling away, he would face this. He turned and pushed himself up to his knees, he could support himself this far, even though his fists were pressed into the ground for stability. Rune studied his opponent, the staunch glare in his eyes, the he held himself a little awkwardly standing alone, the tightness of his fist. "You're fighting for someone you love aren't you? Love brought you here, to this point, didn't it?"

Wally clenched his teeth. "Shut up, you don't know anything about who I am or what I do."

"It's not hard to see" Rune told him, "you're fighting for the one you love you most."

Wally put his right leg behind him, preparing to charge,

"Unfortunately" Rune said, "so am I." Rune let the energy flow through his fists into the ground as he dropped the power from the rune on his elbow, dropping the power of his false image. Kid Flash gasped as a demonic Rune roared at him but also at the massive amounts of runes scrawled all over the ceiling, walls and floor that had just shimmered into being. As Rune's power flowed through the ground, the closest ones lit up, followed by the ones beyond them. One by one, until Rune's room was a shining collage of power. Kid Flash tried to run but Rune was too quick for the speedster. The room lit up with an orgy of different coloured explosions as Kid Flash was thrown through the wall behind him and the wall behind that. Rune took a series of deep breaths as he regained his strength and looked around at the blackened runes that had burnt out on his walls. His elbow briefly flashed green again and Rune shimmered back into his human image before standing up and examining his foe. Kid Flash was lying under some rubble, his chest was visibly still rising and falling, he was only unconscious. _Tough son of a bitch_ Rune thought before feeling the tower shudder and realising he was needed up above.

* * *

In the lounge of the tower, the Titans were fighting a opponents they hadn't ever thought they would have had to before; each other. Hot Spot charged after Starfire with bursts of flame as he pursued. She blasted through the main window and led him outside, she knew her talent at flight, it was time to test his. Beast Boy in his werebeast form roared and charged as Aqualad blasted a torrent of water at him. The blast filled Aqualad's view until Beast Boy flew through it and swiped at Aqualad. The Atlantean flew backwards into the wall. As Beast Boy charged, Aqualad raised his hands up and the water blasted up from underneath the werebeast, throwing him up into the air as Aqualad jumped and struck him with a strong kick. Beast Boy smashed into the kitchen as Raven began to mutter. "Azarath Metrion-" She yelled as a massive red fist flew through the air and smacked into one of the intact windows, putting a spiderweb crack through it.

"You're going to have to talk faster than that to beat me sweetie" Argent cooed, levitating above her.

Raven's eyes glowed white. "I don't need my powers to kick your teeth in" she growled as she took off and struck Argent with an uppercut. Argent flew back as Raven caught her and threw her down into the ground. Argent rolled out of the way as Raven levitated the couch and smashed it down onto where Argent was lying moments previously.

"No Raven!" Robin yelled as he clashed with Red X. "No killing!" He traded a series of blows with the vigilante but Red X was just as well trained as he was, neither could seem to gain an advantage.

Red X dodged under a roundhouse kick and flipped clear of Robin's reach. "You still have that stupid rule" he mocked, "no killing, we can't kill a single person but we will let an entire city die."

"Shut up!" Robin yelled as he charged with another kick. Red X stepped back to avoid the first and then vaulted off Robin's back as he dodged the second, millimetres perfect. Robin continued spinning as his hand dropped to his belt and he threw three discs. Red X blasted two out of the air with his palms as he performed a black flip over the last which flew out the window and was roasted by an awry blast from Hot Spot chasing after Starfire. Starfire twisted and rolled to avoid the balls of flame he was throwing, she was more skilled but Hot Spot had enough talent to prove troublesome to shake off. The pair lit up the night as the tower was surrounded by a light show of green and orange blasts. Starfire twisted and blasted a long line of energy down at Hot Spot but he twisted and spiralled around it, punching her hard in the stomach before following it up with a kick as he flipped backwards. Starfire cried out as she was thrown back but quickly regained control as she floated slightly removed from Hot Spot, his hands a pair of perpetually burning torches as he lit up the air around him. "Just give up Starfire" he called out, "I can fly anywhere you can."

_I do not believe you know everywhere I can fly _Starfire thought, then took off straight upwards. She heard the intensity of Hot Spot's thrusters increase as he took off after her but she had the advantage. Up she climbed, higher and higher, feeling the air cool around her. Hot Spot rose through the clouds after her, lighting it up a bloated yellow. Starfire watched as Hot Spot gritted his teeth as the atmosphere became cooler around them. His skin began to dim despite his efforts, the altitude was taking its toll. Starfire, on the other hand, was unhindered as she kept climbing, watching Hot Spot fade. She slowed and Hot Spot yelled as he blasted forward, desperate to catch her. She watched as his outstretched hand came within inches of her ankle, then Hot Spot's flaming skin went out and his eyes rolled back in his head. He hung in the air for a moment before dropping like a stone. Starfire gasped and tucked herself into a dive after him. She had expected him to give up before he pursued her so high as to run out of oxygen, was this really how desperate their friends had become to stop them? Hot Spot's body fell limply, his limbs hung out behind him. Starfire narrowed her eyes as the wind whipped at her face and hair but she only pushed further, her arms outstretched as the island below rapidly grew larger and larger beneath them. Starfire fingertips inched closer as Hot Spot suddenly opened his eyes and combusted. Starfire took in a surprised breath, he had been faking all along. She had no time to react as Hot Spot produced a fireball and blasted it directly at her heart.

* * *

Robin roared as he swung his bo staff around in a circle, forcing Red X to flip clear before he could press his attack again. Red X fired an x which Robin pole vaulted over before coming down with a furious swing, smashing it into the ground. The top half of the staff popped off and bounced up. Robin caught it and bared the two like swords. Red X beckoned him to come with with his fingers, Robin roared and charged, the sticks blurring as Robin swung and swiped. Red X dodged, rolling onto his back and jumping instantly back to his feet. Robin tried to bring both of the batons down on Red X's shoulders but the vigilante grabbed them and jumped, planting two feet in Robin's chest and rolling backwards, flipping him over. There was a ringing sound as the bars clattered against the ground. Red X and Robin both looked at them and dived, both coming in with one each. Robin's eyes narrowed as he and Red X traced a circle, daring each other to make the first move. The pair had a moment of silence before Robin feinted a thrust and swung. Red X managed to parry and threw off the blow before countering with his own as the two traded ground and blows, the metal ringing out with every clash. Robin gripped his baton with both hands as Red X swung and the batons rattled in his grip from the particularly brutal strikes. Robin threw the baton up and dropped his knees as Red X swung the baton overhead. Robin drove a punch through into Red X's stomach and as the vigilante involuntarily hunched over, Robin caught the baton and swung it up into Red X's face, feeling satisfaction flood through him as the metal connected solidly with his nemesis' face. Red X flew back and rolled back to his feet. His mask had been slightly displaced and Robin spied a small amount caucasian skin before Red pulled the mask down again. Robin gave a sly grin which seemed to anger Red X, reversing their positions. Red X charged at Robin and the Boy Wonder's grin fell as the aggressive attack drove him back and Red X landed a blow on his fingers. Robin cried out in pain, the pain was sharp even through the gloves. Red X took advantage of the moment and landed the next blow squarely on Robin's wrist. Robin felt the bone crack and dropped the bar, Red X was merciless as he pressed a foot into Robin's chest and performed a back flip, kicking Robin under the chin and sending a line of blood flying from the Boy Wonder's lip. Robin hit the ground and groaned, holding his wrist. He watched as Red X walked passed him and fired two X's towards Beast Boy who was still locked in fierce combat with Aqualad, both covered in various bruises and cuts. The projectiles exploded uselessly as Raven flew over her green teammate and threw up a shield between them and Red X but was blasted into the wall by a red beam from Argent. She hit the wall with a groan and the next sound was the crashing sound as Argent followed it up with a savage red fist that splintered the wall around Raven as the empath fell to the ground and didn't get back up. Hot Spot flew up through the window with Starfire limp over his shoulder. He put her down and joined the circle of Titans that was forming around Beast Boy, still ferociously growling, swiping at anyone that got too close as they began to back him towards the corner. Robin dragged himself along the ground towards Starfire, desperate to hold her in his arms, to tell her it would be alright. To lie about how wrong this situation was. He heard a blast power and Beast Boy's howl descend into a pained scream before the sound of another body hitting the ground reached his ears. He was only a few feet from Starfire, she was just within arm's reach. Then his hair was yanked back and he looked up into the skull of Red X as the end of his own staff crashed down into his forehead and darkness filled his vision.

Red X let go of Robin as the leader crashed down beside his girlfriend, unconscious. He looked around at the rest of his group. "Still missing two" he noted, raising his wrist. "Horns, Zippy, where you at?"

The door slid open and Wildebeest walked in with Cyborg draped over his shoulder. "Here's another" he grunted, dumping Cyborg onto the ground with a loud crash.

Red X looked at Cyborg to ensure he was unconscious, "Zippy, we're just waiting on you now."

There was no reply.

"Zippy?"

"Yeah, yeah, I hear you" Kid Flash replied, pushing the pieces of rubble off himself with a groan. "What's the situation up there?"

"Five down," Red X told him, "do you have Rune?"

"Negative" Kid Flash replied, "he got away."

"From you?" Red X asked disbelievingly. "How he managed that is a story I'd like to hear."

"Enough" Wildebeest grunted. "We have the five important ones, the League doesn't care about the other."

"League?" Red X asked.

"We called the Justice League and informed them of our plan" Aqualad said, stepping forward.

"That's why they haven't stepped in sooner" Kid Flash said, just having arrived. "They want them incarcerated at the prison until the League can send a team to collect them."

"And whose idea was this?" Red X asked curiously.

"Mine" Hot Spot growled.

_Of course it was _Red X thought, Hot Spot was the one most against accepting his involvement in their plan, why wouldn't he have made secret arrangements?

"Wildebeest checked the prison's metahuman facility at my behest" Hot Spot said, "he reported that the security systems are still functioning well enough to hold the team after Slade's attack. We're taking them there."

"Right" Red X said, taking a cautious step backwards. He looked at Argent, "I assume you knew about this babe?"

She nodded, "they're still our friends."

Red X shook his head, "Well I see how it is, I'll just be off then."

Hot Spot took an aggressive step to stop Red X escaping but Argent spoke up. "Let him go. We wouldn't have been able to do this without him. Give him that courtesy at least."

Hot Spot relented and Red X chuckled, giving a cheeky salute to the team, looking at Argent. "See you later guys, maybe we'll meet again." Argent flushed as he pointed at her before leaning back and dropping out the window without another sound.

There was a moment of silence before Kid Flash heard himself speak up. "Okay, let's get them out of here before any of them begin to wake up."

Rune watched painfully as his friends were picked up and the victorious Titans walked out. He watched for a moment before the door tried to close but only succeeded in making it halfway before it jammed and sparks randomly burst, the tower seemed to breaking down already without its resident heroes. Rune released his power and shimmered back into view as he slid down the wall, his head in his hands, what was he going to do? He sat alone for a brief moment before he saw Argent and the other Titans take his friends away on a red disc cutting through the clouds. He gritted his teeth. A new sound interrupted his thoughts as something approached the tower. _Shit _Rune realised, it was the chopper from Wayne Industries. Maybe they would be able to help him, considering how quick Robin's code had worked last time. Making his way up the stairs, one hand held around his ribs while another pulled desperately at the step rail, Rune reached the roof just as the helicopter was touching down. A man in a suit and dark glasses jumped out and ran for The attaché case that was waiting on the rooftop. Rune watched from afar as the man briefly popped open the case and examined the emerald green gem. Satisfied, he closed the case and turned around walking straight into Slade. Rune's jaw dropped, where had he come from? One second the man was alone the next Slade had just been there. "I'll be taking that" Slade told him as he wrapped his hand around the man's throat and began to squeeze. The man wheezed and kicked before Slade took the case from him and snapped his neck with a sickening crack. Rune was too far away, helpless to do nothing but watch as Slade stepped onto the helicopter, drew a pistol and shot the pilot through the back of the head twice, splattering the cockpit windows with blood and brains. Slade threw the body out onto the roof and with a rising whir, the helicopter lifted off the roof of the tower, with Slade in firm possession of the final gem. Rune feel to his knees as he watched it leave him behind, trying to make sense of the situation.

The team was gone.

The gem was gone.

And now there were no Titans left to stop the powers Slade was about to unleash.


	24. Beaten, Not Broken

Robin struck out in anger at the wall. "Give it up Robin" Cyborg called, "it's not going to break."

"No!" The Boy Wonder replied angrily, his sentence was punctuated by punches. "I refuse to give in and give up!" His fist met the wall and stayed there, an echo travelled around the room from the impact.

"Let it go Robin," Raven said apathetically. "you're only going to break your wrist even more." Robin looked at the wall, his shoulders heaving before he relented and walked back to join where they were sitting. They had been deposited in a large white room, the walls had been designed to resist any kinds of damage the majority of metahumans could conjure, including the Titans. All of them had come to at relatively the same time and realising where they were, had accepted their fate. All except Robin. He may have had his utility belt with all his tricks and toys confiscated and taken but that didn't mean he couldn't try. He had hammered and pounded the walls until Raven had forced him to sit down so she could work on healing his wrist and resetting the bones. It wasn't perfect but it was enough for Robin to be able to keep going. Starfire had been quiet, without the reinforced chest plate she had worn for the fight with Slade, Hot Spot's fire bolt would have killed her. How had they had fallen so far that their friends would not only fight them but would do anything possible to stop them, even kill them? She vowed when the Justice League collected them, she would be a better person, she would lead them all to being better. They might even rescind their permission for her to stay on Earth, what would happen then? Robin would want to leave with her but she couldn't tear him from this Earth, he needed it in his life. He needed to make a difference, that was his purpose. Right now it seemed, Robin's sole purpose was to beat the wall until either it broke or he did. Raven had managed to make herself useful with healing Robin's wrist but as she sat with her legs crossed, she couldn't help her thoughts from wondering frantically where Rune was, whether he was all right, or even alive. Cyborg was performing repairs on his circuitry wherever his small inventory of tools would allow but even with an operational sonic cannon, there was still no getting out of this cell. All they could do was listen to Robin's constant shouts and yells as he beat against the wall and count the seconds until it all finally ended for them. No one wanted to say it but it was all hanging over their heads. As soon as they were collected, the Teen Titans were over.

* * *

Rune dug around in the wreckage of the tower, looking for anything that could be of use. He had to get his friends out he decided. If he could break out of a prison, then there was no particular reason why he couldn't break in. He dug around through the equipment room, filling a duffel bag to the bursting point before heading back to the top of the tower. Most of the facilities were destroyed but thankfully Rune found a computer that was still functioning, despite the cracked screen and occasionally fuzzy images. He downloaded all the intel he could get on the prison and took a breath. Slade was still out there, and Robin had said that he wouldn't rest until Slade had been stopped. Well, Rune decided, he was going to hold Robin to that promise. He wasn't going to let Cyborg's tower stay in this ruined state, not let Starfire's cooking go to waste in the fridge, or Beast Boy's games go unplayed forever. He wouldn't let the last time he saw Raven be when he had taken his hand from hers and walked away. This tower was built to be lived in by their team, and they would continue to do so, the tower was a staple in their lives, part of the family. It would not be left behind. Rune grabbed anything else he could as he donned a black helmet before descending down to the garage and opened the tunnel. Gunning the throttle on Robin's bike, Rune took off through the streets, weaving in and out of cars, ignoring the horns blaring at him. He could understand the thrill Robin got from it, the adrenaline was almost intoxicating. Rune gritted his teeth and gripped the throttle tighter as he flew through an intersection, perfectly piercing the gap between two cars going in opposite directions. Rune slowed up and dimmed the lights as he approached, stopping quietly. He pulled off his helmet and killed the bike, assessing the structure. What he saw made him grimace. All the lights in the prison were on, with additional light pylon erected in the court yard. Spotlights were on a constant rotation and he could see an army of armed guards patrolling the rooftops. As Rune's eyes scanned the facility, he realised with crushing dismay that there was no way he was going to infiltrate the prison through stealth. The entire facility had been locked down and placed on high alert whilst they held the Titans. Whether that was from the risk of Jump City citizens who wanted to stone the Titans or from the heroes themselves was anybody's guess but one thing was clear; no risks were being taken tonight and every precaution had been made. Rune closed his eyes and exhaled a long breath. He was going to need an army of his own to break in. Rune ran his hand through his hair, where the hell was he going to find an army? He was a relative newcomer in Jump City, he'd only lived here a few mere months. He was in a city that hated the Titans, he had no personal connections, no favours owed to him, he was nobody in this town, nobody without his friends. Rune thought long and hard about them, remembered thinking those were the sort of friends that he'd never have. It was those thoughts that had made him ready to give his life for Raven's when Slade had infiltrated Titans Tower. Previous to that, she had been angry at him for trying to take his own life when he had been lost in his Darkside, for how little he cared for himself. Robin had been the same as her, berating him for fighting impulsively, not taking precautions… Rune's head shot up, he had an idea. It was essentially madness but considering the odds he was up against, maybe madness was all he had left. Rune activated the computer on the R-Cycle, thankfully it was still connected to the tower's systems, and ran a new search. Rune's eyes briefly glanced over the intelligence before he pulled the helmet back on and stamped the bike back into life. With a roar and screech of skidding wheels, Rune turned the bike around and took off, heading back along the way he came. The directions from the bike's GPS systems took him back through the city, into the industrial district where it directed him to a branch of S.T.A.R. Labs. Rune surveyed the building, this one had a lot less security. Rune took off the helmet and got off the bike. He was either about to make a very powerful ally or be brutally murdered, he hoped it would be the former. Rune chuckled at his own internal joke, he was about to attempt to recruit something resembling a one man army, though it definitely wasn't a man, not entirely anymore. Rune scaled the fence and deftly hopped over the line of barbed wire, landing soundlessly on the other side. He looked around quickly ran. He reached the first guard and grabbed his shoulder, roughly turning him around to receive a solid punch to the face that knocked him out. "Sorry" Rune muttered as he left the unconscious guard, climbed a stack of crates and jumped, wrapping his legs around the neck of the guard who had come to investigate the noise. Rune held him tight until the man stopped struggling and then let him go, leaving the limp body behind him. One of the guards who hadn't taken notice of the commotion was moving inside. He lowered his eye to the retinal scanner and squinted into the blue laser running across his vision until a green light flashed. The door unlocked with a click and then a hand grabbed him by the back of the head and slammed him back into the retinal scanner, knocking him out cold. "Thanks" Rune told him as he grabbed the man's automatic rifle, opened the door and moved inside. Rune walked through the lab calmly, looking around at the people inside the glass rooms who were seemingly too busy to take proper notice of him. Rune kept his prompt walk to avoid the second looks, he was just one of the odd grunts with a gun. Rune kept moving until he found what he was looking for, the _Reanimation Project_. He pushed open the door and pointed the gun up to the roof before pulling trigger and letting loose a hail of gunfire.

There was a group of screams as the people in white coats scattered and ran. One of the men, an older gentleman with a thick moustache and glass stepped up to him, he appeared to be the leader. "I don't know what your business is but…"

Rune cut him off as he slammed the butt of the gun into the man's face, knocking him to the ground. "I don't have time for you" he told the man, stepping over him and looking up at the stone golem. Plasmus' face frozen in a scream stared back at him as Rune looked at the villain he had trapped months ago. Rune looked at the grey rune beginning to glow on his palm as it warmed up with power. It was time to do something mad. Rune took a breath and pressed it to Plasmus' torso and fired off a pulse. The statue quivered minutely. Rune took a couple steps back, looking intently, wondering if his idea had been for madness.

Plasmus didn't move.

Rune was just about to turn away when the statue exploded and he heard a familiar scream. Rune dodged the shards of rocks that went flying in every direction and looked to see a once-again magenta Plasmus, his green eyes wild with frenzy. Plasmus swiped with a hand and sent a desk full of lab equipment flying into the light fixtures and walls, making sparks burst and rain down. Rune ran and rolled as a table flew over him and as Plasmus brought his arm down to crush Rune, the Titan brought his hand up to meet the punch with the grey rune glowing again. Plasmus froze with his arm held centimetres from Rune's open palm, seeming to recognise the rune and remembering what it could do. Rune took a few breaths before standing up from where he was on one knee, keeping his hand extended. "You remember this?" He asked the towering giant, who remained mute. "You remember what it can do?"

Plasmus was inarticulate but a blink of his green eyes served as what Rune interpreted to be a reply of affirmation. Rune took another few breaths before saying the statement he knew Plasmus would just love. "I need your help."

Plasmus screamed and flipped a table which destroyed some more equipment and sending the last of the lab technicians running and screaming for their lives.

"Hey!" Rune shouted, getting Plasmus' attention again. "I freed you and I can put you back in the stone!" He thrusted the grey rune towards Plasmus to which the monster flinched away from. "My friends were taken captive. Help me free them," Rune told him, "and I'll let you go, no stone and no prisons. Just you and freedom."

Plasmus didn't react but he could feel all of Plasmus's eyes focussing on him, weighing up the offer.

"Do we have a deal?" Rune asked, his heart racing with the thought that Plasmus could kill him at any moment surging through his head. He was determined not to show any fear.

Plasmus finally moved, lowering his arm. He gave a grunt and turned away before leaning forward and spewing a torrent of acid. Rune watched as a section the wall melted away and Plasmus strode through.

Rune followed the villain-turned-ally as he saddled back up on the bike. "Can you keep up?" He asked. Plasmus gave a roar at being challenged and Rune shrugged. "All right then" he muttered, gunning the throttle. He released the brakes and the bike took of with a squeal as Plasmus followed, each of his steps shook the ground under Rune's wheels, it was hard not think that he was being chased by the magenta giant. Rune could hear the horns and panicked cries of people as the motorbike flew past… then the panic turned to apocalyptic hysteria as Plasmus charged through in pursuit. Two police cars flew out in front of them, forming a blockade in the oncoming interaction. Rune grinned, he knew the trick to beat that tactic. He yanked upwards on the handlebars and felt the rush of hot air as the thrusters underneath the bike roared to life and carried it over the blockade. Rune looked back as the police turned their attention to Plasmus and opened fire to little effect. Plasmus screamed and slammed into the police cars, throwing them in opposite directions as they crashed into buildings. "No!" Rune yelled at Plasmus, "no killing! We do this my way!"

Plasmus didn't reply but Rune knew he had gotten the message across. They continued on to the vantage point where Rune had previously been overlooking the prison before Rune got off the bike and shouldered his bag. He looked up to his partner in their uneasy alliance. "You know what to do?"

Plasmus grunted in reply and Rune gestured. "Lead the way." Plasmus fell silent as he lumbered forth with Rune at his side. Rune found the lack of dialogue between them eerie, as if his partner was planning to stab him in the back but then again he had never worked with an inarticulate being before. As the pair approached the prison walls, a light suddenly highlighted them and Rune shielded his eyes from the harsh white blast.

"Stand down!" A voice bellowed at them, "stand down or we will open fire!"

Plasmus roared, shooting flecks of ooze. Rune stood defiant, dropping his hands and staring back. The guards didn't hesitate, the closest prison tower flashed as the turret opened fire. Rune jumped back as bullets slammed into the pavement around his feet. Plasmus roared again as his torso rippled from all the shots slamming into him to no effect. Rune took cover behind him as Plasmus roared again.

"Okay you can get violent" Rune relented, "just try not to kill. Please?"

Plasmus roared and raised an arm, firing a massive glob of himself. The guard had just enough time to jump back as the glob slammed into the tower, making it unusable. A group of guards formed a firing line along the front wall and took aim. Plasmus arched back and a multitude of projectiles flew from his stomach, slamming into the group. There was the rattling of another gun as the next tower aimed and unleashed its hail. Plasmus' arm rotated around to his back, extended towards Rune. Rune looked at it and then shrugged. "What the hell" he muttered, putting his hand into Plasmus where it was sucked in up to the wrist. The discomfort of going hands-deep in Plasmus' warm muck was nothing compared to the vertigo as suddenly Plasmus wrenched his arm around and slung Rune at the tower. Rune felt the wind tearing at his face as the world rushed past him. Rune could see the guard's eyes widen behind his visor as Rune slammed into him and together they flew. Time slowed as Rune grappled with the guard in the air above the prison courtyard. Rune pushed the guard away from him and watched as he sailed down and crashed through a prison van windscreen. Continuing to hurtle, Rune landed in the tower on the other side and punched the guard unconscious with one blow. Rune jumped on the turret and shot at the last remaining tower, making the guard scramble for cover and flee. A hail of bullets flew up at him as the guards packed in the courtyard but all turned as the main prison doors flew off as Plasmus charged. Rune grinned and dived out, sliding down the side of the building as he joined in the fight, hitting the first with a diving punch as Plasmus charged around throwing guards around in a rampage of swinging fists with bodies flying left and right. Rune moved from guard to guard, expelling a flurry of punches, kicks and grapples as he incapacitated the guards in a series of attacks. Plasmus threw a guard away and Rune caught him in midair, swinging him around before slamming him into the concrete courtyard floor. Rune looked at the barrel of the gun pointed at him from the next guard and grabbed it, pulling the guard in before Rune rolled backwards and pressed his feet into the man's stomach, throwing him up into the air where Plasmus swiped at him, sending him flying into the side of a prison van where he left a dented imprint of his body in the metal. Rune jumped around and battered away a guard's gun with his first foot and then the second swung around, breaking the man's jaw and kicking him down to the ground. Rune was still, his muscles tensed as silence slowly fell over the courtyard, the guards were either all beaten or had fallen back. Plasmus stood up straight and looked around. "Let's go" Rune said, waving his hand, "special prisoners block is this way."

Plasmus followed Rune's lead up to a building and began to shudder. He spurted a torrent of acid at the wall and slammed a punch into it. He followed it up with three more hammering blows before vomiting another salvo of acid and repeating the punches. The walls were thick, and resistant, this would take some time. Rune split his attention between watching Plasmus' work and checking for any reinforcements out to stop them. Plasmus roared and and began another series of punches, driving deeper through the wall. It was only a matter of time, nothing could stop him now.

* * *

Robin had finally sat down beside Starfire but couldn't find the strength to pull his eyes away from the floor. He had failed. He could only imagine how disappointed his mentor would be, all he ever wanted was to be able to live up to that legend. Now he was looking to live outside the prison of the league's constant supervision and babysitting. It was all out of his hands now, whatever happened next was out of control. Out of everything Robin had been through, there was nothing he hated more than being useless, watching everything spiral out of control and knowing there was nothing he could do to stop it, knowing the futility of resistance. Starfire ran her fingers over his tense closed hands, trying to silently soothe the storm raging behind his emotionless expression. There was no way to tell the time from inside but Robin knew it was deep in the early hours of the morning, the League would arrive with the sun most likely. Raven had barely said a word, Beast Boy frighteningly even less. The thought of their failure had been lowered like a veil over their hearts, like a muzzle had been put over their spirits.

"So," Cyborg said, startling all of them, "think the League or the other Titans will take down Slade?"

"Can they take him down?" Beast Boy asked.

"One can't" Robin said bitterly, "the other won't bother. Slade was ours to deal with, he was our enemy. And we failed."

His statement was enough to usher back in the muzzle over their spirits once again, and they fell back into silence. They all listened to the beating of their hearts, a rhythm of three thumps, then a pause. Robin was the first to realise it wasn't his heart. He stoop up quickly and made his way quickly to the wall, placing his hands and pressing his ear against it. His eyes widened behind his mask as he took three hurried steps back. The other Titans rose cautiously at his reaction, backing up with him. The noise of the pounding escalated. Half a dozen hits later, the room started to noticeable quake. A small crack appeared in the wall, then blossomed to spread from the floor to the ceiling. The next blow made a breath of dust erupt from the wall. They heard a scream from the other side that made them all instinctively tense into a fighting position. The wall exploded with a massive cloud of dust that made everyone shield their eyes. As the dust cleared, they saw a dark silhouette begin to appear in the light.

"Rune!" Raven cried.

Rune looked at them with an angry expression on his face. "Save your emotional speeches, we got asses to kick" he said, pulling the bag off his shoulders and throwing it into the group where it spilled open. Raven spied Robin's utility belt, a few of Cyborg's components amongst other gadgets.

Raven ran over and threw her arms around him, Rune held her in similar fashion, then Raven surprised him as she withdrew from the hug only to kiss him, her soft lips reaching up to his. Rune held her in his arms and returned the kiss, the taste of Raven's on his was better, stronger, it felt more right than it ever had been before. They had kissed out of lust, out of curiosity, out of passion but this kiss was, it meant, something… deeper. They broke apart and looked back at the team. Cyborg was grinning, Starfire looked like she was about to explode from happiness. Rune shared a look with Beast Boy and the green Titan nodded his understanding, a gesture that meant more to Rune than any other.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah" Robin said as he got kitted out again and walked out the hole in the wall. "The relationship more obvious than me and Starfire finally happened, big deal."

"Nice try" Cyborg said, keeping up, "but no one has ever been _that_ obvious."

Robin's reply was cut silent by the sight of Plasmus standing in the courtyard. He tensed but Rune put a hand on his shoulder. "Relax" Rune told his leader, "he's with me." He walked over to Plasmus who looked down at his liberator and blinked. Rune nodded and gestured towards the gaping archway that had been sealed by the main doors. "You fulfilled your part of the bargain, you may leave. Thank you."

The team watched as Plasmus slowly lumbered out of the gate before being swallowed up by the darkness. "We're just letting him go?" Beast Boy asked.

"We have to" Robin growled, "we have bigger concerns to worry about. Let's move."

The team ran out but Rune paused for a moment, feeling something was amiss. He looked at the bodies and narrowed his eyes, there was one less than he remembered. He looked at one of the trucks and checked around the corner only to meet a guard with his pistol pointed straight at Rune's chest. Rune gasped as the guard pulled the trigger. There wasn't the bang sound Rune was expecting, instead there was a click. Rune opened his eyes as the guard held up his gun, looking at it in frustration. It had jammed. The door on the truck suddenly flew open and slammed in the guard's face, throwing him backwards, out cold. "Oh, bad luck" a cooing voice called.

Rune turned to see a girl standing behind him. Pink sparks jumped from the fingers in her good hand, one of her arms was wrapped in a sling. Her hair was organised into two pink tendrils that pointed skyward. Rune was speechless, it was none other than Jinx. "Jinx? But…"

"Fear is inevitable" Jinx told him, cutting straight to the point. "But we can't let it control us. There is much to fear about the power we wield, but I still believe in the Titans, in heroes." She nodded her head, "so go, fight Slade, stop him however you can. I'll cover for you any way I can manage. Make Jump City believe again."

Rune nodded, there was no way he could express his gratitude for what Jinx had done, the belief she held. He just nodded, turned back to where the Titans were converging outside the prison gates.

"We have less than four hours until the Justice League arrives for us" Robin told his team. "That gives us approximately two hundred minutes to find, fight and stop Slade."

"How are we going to find Slade in three hours when we haven't been able to do it in all the years we've been fighting him?" Raven asked.

Right on cue, a rumble of thunder fractured the clouds before a storm of lightning bolts fractured the sky, illuminating the night with a series of flashes. The Titans traced the bolts of lightning that were becoming near constant down to a levitating figure. Around him, floating in the air were three massive gems that the lightning was striking, bolts jumped from one to the other creating a triangle of electricity around him; the power of the Ascendence trio was about to be unleashed.

All of the Titans' expressions grew into anger. Not only was Slade stealing a power that was not meant for a mortal, he had been unable to resist cementing his victory atop one final insult, one final show that would demonstrate his dominance for now and all time. "It's time we took our home back" Robin growled, looked at Slade's floating figure hanging above a massive 'T' shaped building on an island in the harbour. Titans Tower would not go down in history as the place where darkness seized supremacy. "Remember how I asked if you would kill Slade, given the chance?" Rune asked, stepping up to be beside his leader.

"And I said I wasn't sure?" Robin asked in reply, neither him nor Rune looking away from the spectacle.

Rune nodded, "tonight you might be forced to find out."

Robin's face became a scowl. This was Slade's game, _moves and countermoves_, all executed perfectly from the darkness. Well now it was their turn to play. Robin turned around to look at his team. "Raven, get us back to our island."

Raven nodded as her eyes became ablaze with power and her raven enveloped the team before taking off and flying back towards home. Rune swallowed, there was no resets after this, this was it. This was Slade. Rose would be there as well. If they won then it all ended. If they lost… well Beast Boy's terms of 'history' seemed fitting enough. Even hidden away by Raven's power, Rune felt his skin tingle with power. It was time to go to war. It was time to fight. Jump City may have given up on the Teen Titans but the Titans were not ready to give up on their city. It was time to fight. And at that moment, in the minds of every Titan, in the mind of Slade, of Rose slightly removed who was watching her father, only one thought rolled through, only one thought remained. _It all ends here._


	25. Moves and Countermoves

The Titans stood stunned as they watched the circle of lightning rain down from the sky down on their tower. What was left of the windows on the tower shattered and glass rained down on their island, the circuitry fried and sparks burst as the lightbulbs exploded. Slade looked up at the white circle of light around him that ran up to the sky. The air exploded with crackles of lightning as bolts jumped between the gems surrounding him. He could feel the power slowly descending from the heavens and entering him, it would take time but he was getting stronger. He looked over at Jump City beyond the veil of energy and smiled to himself, he was about to unleash something they had never seen before.

Robin's scowl grew. He turned to Raven, "get us there."

She looked up to the sky as her eyes turned white and black wings spread from her back before the entire raven materialised and enveloped the team. She took off, flying fast and low, the wings leaving ripples on the water as it skimmed the waves. Slade diverted his attention from the spectacle raining down to notice the Titan's approach, he could feel her power. "Isn't that interesting?" He murmured, then reached into himself and tapped into the powers he had already received. He held in his gasp of satisfaction as one unfurled within him and extending his hands, he fired a shimmer of air at Raven. It slammed into the team and Raven suddenly gasped as she felt her power disappear. Her raven disintegrated in an explosion of black shreds as suddenly the team suddenly reappeared in the air. They hit the damp sand of Titan's Island's shores and bounced to a stop.

Beast Boy groaned as he rubbed the back of his head, "Yo Raven, what gives?"

Raven was sitting up, looking at her hands. "My power" she muttered, "it's gone."

"What do you mean, gone?" Robin asked.

"I mean I can't use it" Raven told him feebly, "I can't even feel it. It's just gone."

"Looks like Slade's got some new talents" Cyborg said, looking up at the black silhouette within the column of white.

"It's not going to save him" Robin muttered, offering his hand. Raven accepted it and he pulled her up. "You can still fight and as a Titan I still expect you to."

"I'll do that gladly" Raven muttered, clenching her fist.

"There's gonna be a tonne of his robots between the ground floor and the roof" Cyborg warned.

"Good" Raven muttered, "I want a fight."

The team charged in through the door which was still lying on the ground thanks to Wildebeest and braced as an army of robots turned to look at them. "Titans!" Robin yelled, "go!"

Rune roared as the group charged, Starfire's eyes blasted green as she carved a swath through Slade's minions, matched by Cyborg opposite her as he hosed the front lines down with his sonic cannon. Rune blasted the two in front of him and grabbed another, swinging it round like a bat and clearing out three more. Rune's arm brightened as he pressed a palm into one and suddenly all the energy drained from it, leaving it to fall lifelessly. Rune took the head from another and with his brown rune activated, threw it with enough force to go straight through a series of robots. Beast Boy shifted into a rhino and ploughed into the middle, tearing and crushing with hooves and horn as he bucked and thrashed. Robin's bo staff was cleaving through robotic heads and bodies as he swung with all his might, leaving in a midst of broken parts and the crackling energy from disembodied robotic limbs. Robin ducked under laser fire and threw a series of discs, the following explosions dealing with another dozen or so. Raven was probably angriest, with her powers suppressed, there was nothing to stop her fighting with emotions as she ripped out wires and kicked in faceplates. She took off a robot's arm and used the blaster still clenched in its cold fingers to bring down five of its kin. After only a few minutes of fighting but felt like so much longer, Rune punched through the chest of the last robot and crushed whatever served as its heart. It toppled back and the only sound left was the Titans' breathing.

"There's more to go yet" Robin said, the other Titans nodded and followed his lead as they tore through the next few floors.

Cyborg was the first one to voice his doubt. "This is taking too long, and we can't keep this up with a chance against Slade."

Robin was leaning on his staff as he caught his breath, forced to accept the truth in his words. "We can't fly up, with Slade's powers the air it's too exposed. Anyone else have an idea?"

Beast Boy traded a glance with Starfire. "Do you remember that plan I joked about making if the world ever ended?" He asked. "Do you think it could work?"

"You want me to-" Starfire started before laser fire started streaking through the air; Slade's forces had decided to take the fight to them.

"FEED HIM THE BERRIES!" Beast Boy yelled as he charged with the other Titans towards the line. Starfire nodded as she threw three blasts in succession at the ceiling before punching t

* * *

rough it. She passed up three floors that way, passing innumerable amounts of Slade's minions until she got to her room and found what she was looking for.

Rune flipped one of Slade's robots around and forced it to soak up fire from others as a human shield before throwing it back into the group and knocking half a dozen or so down with it. "We can't hold out forever!"

Beast Boy heard the cry first, and the rumble of the floors. "We won't have to" he said, a small grin starting to appear on his face.

Rune was about to question his meaning when the wall exploded and a massive cream-coloured blob crashed into the room, crushing half the robots and with an enormous mouth, consumed the rest as the pieces were mashed within its teeth. Rune was bewildered until it looked around at him with a pair of shiny and enthusiastic black beady eyes. "Silkie?!" He asked.

"Silkie on zorkaberries" Beast Boy said proudly. Starfire smiled as she floated down and scratched Silkie under his roll of blubber that resembled a chin and he purred happily before biting down on one robot's upper body trying to drag itself out of the larva's mouth to safety.

"Not bad" Robin said admirably, a grin on his face. "Can he clear the rest of the way for us?"

"Does Silkie ever get tired of eating?" Beast Boy asked back jokingly in reply. Starfire hugged Silkie and whispered a few sentences before Silkie lumbered forward and through the hole in the wall he had created.

"He will provide an excellent diversion" She promised.

"Then let's get up there" Robin said, looking at each member of his team. "And finish this."

They all nodded and the team followed in Silkie's wake of wrecked minions before kicking off the rooftop access door. Slade was at the other end, directly facing them, he was floating half a dozen feet in the air. Between them stood Rose, most of her face including one of her eyes was obscured by the mask she wore but Rune recognised her instantly. She stood trained and ready, a sword in her hands that was constantly shimmering with light reflected from the column of lightning behind her. "I'm assuming that's Slade's daughter?" Beast Boy asked.

Rune just nodded as Rose's eye matched his. He charged and the group followed his lead. Rose met his charge as she swung the sword at his neck. Rune slid on his knees past her as it flew overhead and Robin landed a solid kick into her stomach, the punch Starfire hit her with knocked her to the ground. Rune didn't turn to look as he slipped past her, throwing his rings of energy at Slade. They exploded as they collided with the wall of energy.

Slade's eye narrowed. "I don't think I appreciate your powers either" he said, pointing a hand at Rune. Rune gasped as he fell to one knee, feeling his power writhe and die within him. His skin was only tattoos now, the runes just carvings on his skin, there was nothing powerful about him. He had nothing.

Slade slowly lowered to the ground, the column lost a small part of its lustre as his boots made contact with the tower's roof. It faded out into nothingness as he walked out of its borders, though the gems still stayed afloat. "I have enough power to crush you, not that it ever was challenging without it" he said in a deep voice, drenched in confidence. Rune ran for him but Slade pushed at him and Rune felt himself slow for the briefest of moments before Slade's boot rammed into his stomach and Rune felt the world whistling past his ears as he flew backwards, thrown by Slade's enhanced strength.

"Titans, split!" Robin ordered and the team moved around as Rose pursued Beast Boy with enormous arcing slashes that held back the entire team, leaving them able to escape but not able to attack. It may have seemed clumsy but Robin could tell she was buying time for Slade and doing it perfectly too, she had been dangerously well trained. Robin flicked away her sword and left her, feeling her reverse slash trim his cape a few centimetres. Cyborg took the opportunity to move past out of Rose's reach and Starfire had already flown over. Rose moved to cut them off, at the legs but Slade held out a hand to stop her.

"No" he commanded, "I will deal with these inadequacies. Those ones," he said, pointing to where Beast Boy, Raven and Rune were left, "are yours."

Rose nodded and flicked her sword around, the sound of it cutting through air raised the hairs on the back of Beast Boy's neck. Rune stood back up and joined his two friends to where they were beginning to circle Rose. Her one eye flicked back and forth between the two, Rune stood directly to her front. He watched as Rose's right foot twisted towards Beast Boy and reacted. She thrusted for his neck but Rune kicked her hands around the hilt, sending the thrust awry. Beast Boy and Raven both moved to attack but Rose twisted, swinging with an upwards cut at Raven and extending her leg to kick Beast Boy in the chest. Beast Boy went sprawling back as Raven sidestepped before throwing a straight punch. Rose moved but it connected with her shoulder, forcing her to take two steps back. Rune tried to take advantage but she raised her wrist, shooting two black blades at him. Rune dodged but the first cut a line along his ribs and the second his cheek, the first tearing a gash in his shirt. Rune gasped as he felt his blood leaking out down his skin. Rune wondered why it felt so strange when he realised that the rune that had constantly been sealing him back up was gone, he was now mortal. Rune was so lost in his dawning realisation that he didn't see Rose's kick coming until it had slammed into the side of his jaw. He stumbled back wildly until he hit the guard rail on the edge. Rune dared to look over down at the black roaring waves below, he could hear them calling him, beckoning him, the promise of that one final peace. It was so close, there would be nothing to stop him from dying, he just any other normal person.

"Rune!"

Raven's cry snapped him back into the moment as he looked away to see Rose coming down on him, her sword held over her head. Rune jumped out of the way as she came down, her sword carving through the rail like scissors through paper. Rune twisted away again as she followed up with more cuts and thrusts, her low sweep taking out an entire section of the rail. Rune jumped back out of the blade's reach as he heard the section of railing crash against the side of tower on its tumble down. Rune picked himself up off the ground as Beast Boy and Raven stood at his side. Rose let loose a savage grin as she bore down on them again, leading with her blade.

Robin turned his attention from the other three Titans before receiving a blow to the gut. Slade's next blow to his temple was thwarted as Starfire hurled a star bolt, making him jump clear. Cyborg pursued with a hammer blow, striking Slade's blocking arms with such strength it jarred his arm even with his enhanced strength. The notion of pain made Slade snarl as he picked up Cyborg and threw him back down into the ground before kicking him along the ground. Cyborg groaned as he pulled off the dented armour plate from around his ribs before getting back up and charging. Robin charged at his side. One glance was all the pair needed to understand each other as they weaved in and out of each other before diving. Robin threw his explosives which were swallowed up in Cyborg's sonic blast. Slade threw his hands over his eyes as the sonic boom whited out everything in front of him. Slade opened his eye to see Robin leaping at him with a flying kick but Slade grabbed his ankle and swung him round before throwing him into Starfire, knocking them both to the ground. Cyborg hesitated as he looked to see if they were okay and Slade reacted. Moving as quick as the lightning that had been striking the gems, Slade kicked Cyborg onto his back then as Cyborg aimed with his cannon, Slade stomped down on his leg, fracturing the metal and reinforced plastic casing. Cyborg cried out as Slade twisted his foot and the leg shifted before Slade yanked back and ripped Cyborg's leg off at the knee. Cyborg yelled out in pain as he aimed with the cannon and fired. Slade watched as the beam missed by at least two feet and connect with one of the gems still hovering silently in the air, waiting patiently for Slade to return within its borders. The gem glowed brightly as Cyborg emptied everything he had into it, determined to destroy the source of Slade's power but as he stopped, the gem released a shockwave that threw back the Titans, passing by Slade who was left untouched. Slade smiled, the gems knew their master.

The other three Titans looked up as the white shockwave flew towards them and tossed them back. Rose twisted her blade and thrust it into the ground, holding onto it for support as it pushed at her but the strength of the blade remained firm. Rune and Raven picked themselves up, without their powers, the fight was taking a greater toll on their endurance than both of them would have liked. They heard a cry as Beast Boy was locked in a fist fight with Rose, having attacked before she could pull her sword free. They watched as Rose flowed around Beast Boy's swinging limbs like rippling water, weaving free of his attacks of tooth and claw. She then punched him in the face and as he reverted back to a dazed human, grabbed his arm and threw him in air, out towards the harbour. Raven reached with her hand instinctively but remembered her powers were gone, she couldn't catch him as he hurtled past the reach of the safety rail. He was going to fall, and in the state Rose had punched him in he wouldn't regain his senses before he hit the ground. She tried again to contact her powers but she could feel them just held beyond her reach, she couldn't save him. Rune dived out for Beast Boy's white gloved hand as it disappeared over the edge and yelled as his palm closed around it, yanking on his shoulder muscle. Rune yelled as all of Beast Boy's weight yanked down on his arm but with a groan that escalated towards a yell, he pulled the Titan back up over the edge, sucking in deep breaths as he rolled onto his back. He pulled Beast Boy back to his feet.

"You saved me" Beast Boy said, half amazed, half exhausted.

"Can't have anyone dying just yet" Rune said then flinched as his back stiffened. He looked down to see about an entire foot of metal jutting out from the middle of his chest, the silver steel stained red with blood. Across the rooftop, Ravager stared with sick fascination, her thrown sword had hit her mark perfectly. Rune looked back up to Beast Boy, his face and body was covered in blood splatter as he blinked a couple times in shock. Rune looked at him and was suddenly gripped with a fear. He heard Raven's scream, a piercing cry of anguish, loss, fear and rage. The whole world felt numb, then cold, almost as if the steel had been made of ice. It spread through his body and his muscles began to go limp, refusing to obey him. Rune coughed, feeling blood make his mouth warm and slippery, a line trickled out of the corner of his lip as his body began to fold in on itself and he crumbled to the ground. Raven was beside him in a flash, the look of horror on Beast Boy's face shifted to rage as he screamed and took off after Ravager. Rune lay on his side, as she cupped his face. "Please don't go" she begged him, "stay with me."

Rune tried to reply but suddenly Raven's gaze was torn away as Ravager bore down on her. Raven was forced to scramble away as Ravager's daggers cut through the air around her. Ravager stepped over Rune's body and gripped the handle of the sword buried in his back. Rune gasped as he felt it yanked out of him, and blood rush out quicker. Rune lay still, powerless to do anything except watch the red pool grow larger and larger in every direction. He could hear the sounds of battle around him, Rose screamed and Raven cried out in reply. _No, _Rune told his failing body. _I can't die, not now, I'm still needed here._

_Why shouldn't we leave? _His body asked in response, _our time is done, our power is gone, we have nothing left to offer._

_But I can't go _Rune's thoughts insisted, _I can't leave my friends to die, I can't leave Raven to die._

_Why not? _His body questioned, _why can't we leave her?_

Rune's reply was simple, and obvious. He'd known it all along. _Because I love her _he thought and then the tingle on his flesh returned. A rune had lit up. The feeling was unfamiliar to Rune, he'd never felt this rune, it had just awakened, and it had been love that had done it, his last rune had been woken by love. The rune passed energy through his body, and one by one, the other runes began to light up. Rune convulsed, it wasn't only waking the other runes back up, it was giving them a power he'd never felt before, it was giving them something to fight for. His healing rune on his wrist lit up and Rune gasped as a breath of air rushed back into his lungs. He felt the blood return to him, his energy bubbling and boiling within it. Rune felt his fists clench and press against the ground as he stood back up, lifting his head up last, every rune along his body was alight. Robin and Slade and everyone else stopped fighting to stare as Rune looked at them all, his eyes ablaze with a hundred colours from all the power coursing through him. Ravager screeched and dived at him, determined to permanently put him down but Rune simply grabbed the blade, wrapping his fingers around it. Ravager was helpless as Rune squeezed and the blade shattered like glass in his hand, the pieces ringing as they bounced on the ground. She looked at him a shocked expression as he drove a punch into her stomach, catching her in a moment of weakness and driving the air out of her. She tried to tackle Rune but he dodged out of the way and sent her sprawling on the ground. She looked up furiously as Rune converged on her, intent on ending this battle once and for all. She rolled backwards and dived over the rail, grabbing it and she swung over and dropped through a shattered window on the top floor, one level below the roof. Raven and Beast Boy moved to pursue her but Rune stopped them "No!" He growled, making them pause. "Stop Slade, she's mine." Raven gave him a questioning look but he met her cooly with his own and she understood. She motioned Beast Boy over and he joined her as they rushed over to join Robin and Starfire who were torn between fighting Slade and protecting Cyborg. Rune jumped after Rose and just saw the flash of steel with enough time to roll as Rose swung with her sai. Rune came up behind her as she twisted and swiped, chasing with her daggers. Rune flipped backwards she unloaded a salvo of blades, he was reading her moves before she'd even made them. She knew it as well as her attacks became more and more frantic, her desperation starting to override her training. Rune stepped back nimbly out of reach and then as he ducked under her high kick that followed her low one, his foot swung around and connected squarely with her head, tearing off her mask. It clattered to the ground and Rose paused, her face lit up by the dim dark blue emergency lights. "Rose…" Rune started, his jaw hanging slightly ajar by the grisly sight, her right eye socket stitched with a few tears of blood reddening the socket. The sight tore at Rune, even in his power-induced focus. His face slackened and slowly reformed into a mixture of sadness and horror at what she had done, he immediately knew it had been her.

Rose growled at him as he didn't attack, she desperate to fight, desperate for blood, it was all she longed for.

"What did you do to yourself?" Rune asked sadly, "why?"

"The Ravager would do anything for her her father" Rose hissed, the knuckles around her sai turning white.

Rune looked at the mask on the ground. "The Ravager?" He repeated. "You're Rose Wilson, the girl from the streets of Gotham, the gem amongst a rough family," he swallowed, "the love of Finn Tylers' life."

"Both of them are dead!" She screamed at him, "this is what we are now!"

"It doesn't have to be!" Rune pleaded in return. "Rose, what we've done isn't who we are. It's what we choose to do."

Rose began to shake, her one eye clouding with doubt. Rune thought he had gotten through to her before she screamed again. "No! I am the Ravager and you will die!" She threw both her sai at him but Rune twisted in between them and tried to grab her. Rose jumped back, somersaulting away from him. She landed at the edge of the broken window but disappeared with a scream as the weakened floor gave way.

"Rose!" Rune yelled running to her. He looked over and saw her hanging by one hand off a steel bar exposed by the broken floor.

She looked at him and her eye narrowed in anger. "You cost me everything" she said, "now it's time to give it all up." She let go of the bar but Rune reached and snatched her by the wrist, holding her steady.

"Not yet" he told her, "this is not our time to die."

She writhed in rage and beat at his hand with her free one but it was of no use, Rune held firm. "Let me fall!" She screamed.

Rune flashed back to the moment when he was cradling Rose's body all those years ago. When the paramedics and told him what he had already assumed, that she was dead, they took her away from him. He remembered staying on the ground, the last thing for them to part was their hands as he dropped it from hers. It all came rushing back in this moment. "No!" He yelled, "I won't let you go! Not again!"

She looked at him with a simple hatred, she hated him for denying her a good end. "Then you leave me no choice" she said, pulling the pistol from her thigh, cocking and pointing it.

"ROSE!" Rune screamed as she pulled the trigger and her temple exploded as she committed suicide. Her suit arm that Rune was holding was splattered with blood and brains. Blood ran down Rose's face as it hung limply, her hand went limp in Rune's grip. Rune felt his eyes heating up with tears as he screamed in frustration and grief. Rose was silent as blood ran down her body, dripping off her chin, it almost was black in the darkness. He remembered that last moment they had when she was lost, it further blinded him with tears as he lifted her up inside and laid her body down. He stroked her hair away from the bloody wound, he could see the traces of the girl he had loved, even if she couldn't have. Rune closed her eye and wished a silent prayer before a rumble from above made his head snap up, the other Titans were still fighting hard. Rune got up, all his hope for this fight was gone. He looked around before leaving Rose, her body lifeless in the cold darkness. There was only one thing left to end this fight.

* * *

Slade yelled as he beat down on Robin, leaving the teenager winded as he jumped between Starfire's blasts and Cyborg's sonic cannon fire to hit the Tamaranean and threw her back down to the tower with a crash. With the power he wielded, nothing could stop him. Slade charged at Beast Boy, grabbing him as a lion and slamming down on top of Cyborg where he already lay, incapacitating them both. He turned to catch Raven's fist as she struggled to land a hit on him. "Don't make me laugh" he said, lifting her up by her wrist and drawing back a fist to punch her with.

"Slade!" Rune shouted from the door of the tower. He was limping slightly as he crossed the distance between them, in his hand was Rose's mask, the mask of Ravager. "Enough."

Slade looked at the mask, then back at Rune. "Where is she?" He asked slowly, careful to pronounce every word right. When Rune shook his head, he dropped Raven and flew at Rune. "WHERE IS SHE!?" Slade roared. Rune didn't resist as Slade grabbed him by the collar. "WHAT DID YOU TO HER!?" He yelled, smashing his mask into Rune's face with a headbutt and throwing him down to the ground.

Rune looked back up at Slade, his nose bleeding and a busted lip. "You think I would've killed her?" He asked. "I loved her."

"SHE WAS MY DAUGHTER!" Slade shouted, kneeling down to punch Rune. Rune fell onto his back as Slade grabbed him, near frothing with rage. Rune realised this was how he had been when he had expended all his rage onto that man in the alleyway that night. Slade punched him again and again. Rune felt the cold surface of Slade's fist being hammered into his face again and the taste of blood filling his mouth. The next cut busted a bruise on his face into trickling blood. Rune felt himself slip further away with every punch, as if each blow pushed him deeper underwater, further away from the air, drowning under the pain, his vision was fading, the circle of darkness around his vision encroached further with every hit, it was almost extinguished. The next after that produced a loud crack as his eye socket fractured. Slade had descended into nothing but rage as his fists rose and flew back down, the sound of Slade's fist meeting flesh almost echoed around them.

"Rune!" Raven screamed, her hand outstretched, but no powers came. Her hand wouldn't even spark. She heard Rune groan in pain as he was hit again and a boiling torrent of red flooded her mind, completely shattering the last barrier between her and her power. Raven's eyes split into four and glowed red, she rose off the ground with tentacles of shadow spawning from the darkness of her cloak. She had one single boiling purpose that drove her forward. _Kill Slade, I want him dead. Now. In the most painful way possible. _She reached out and a tentacle drove forward, catching Slade under the ribs and slamming him down into the ground, shaking the building to its foundations. Slade grunted as Raven's next strike rammed him straight through it. Two tentacles reached in and dragged him out, his arms held out in the same fashion he had displayed her so many nights ago when Rune had saved her. There would be no one to save Slade though. She would grant him death, but first she would make him beg for it. She would finish this as it had nearly started. She hit him twice across the face while her restraints around his arms constricted like serpentine coils and began to pull. Slade took a sharp breath as he was powerless, Raven struck his torso twice just to make sure he was struggling to breathe as she kept the strength slowly lifting on his arms before two more reached up to apply the same pressure to his legs, pulling his body in every direction. She could almost feel his shudders as his tendons began to tear and bones dislocate, it only excited her further and her powers only pulled harder. Slade's body rippled as the tension built up and his muscles began to be torn apart, then he lifted his head back and made a sound none of the Teen Titans had ever heard him make before. He screamed. He screamed in such a guttural way from the pain as Raven twisted and pulled at him that eventually Beast Boy wrenched Raven out of the sky as a gorilla. "Raven, stop!" He cried, changing back.

"Never" Raven hissed, her voice alive and delighted at the reaction she had elicited from him, feeding her frenzy.

"Raven, you'll kill him!" Beast Boy yelled.

_Yes _Hatred thought. _Kill him. Make him scream. Tear him limb from limb. Take your time. Exact revenge. You want this, remember what he did to Rune, what he did to you, he deserves this…_

"No" came a different voice. Hatred looked to see Rune struggling to stand, raising himself to one knee. "No" he repeated to Hatred, he was bleeding from a collection of bruises and cuts to his face, one of his eyes was completely ringed red and his voice was soft, loud as the broken ribs around his lungs would allow. "This isn't you Raven. This is Hate, this is Fear, this is Rage. You are not your emotions, your emotions are you. Show them who is in control, remember the girl who saved me, who gave me a home. The girl who I knew was worth dying for even when I had known her scarcely a week. Remember her, because I do. Every day, every damn morning when I wake up and every damn night before I go to sleep. Don't let that sack of shit Slade take away your humanity, it's the part of you I treasure most."

Raven wavered slightly, then lowered to the ground, dropping Slade back to the ground again, her coils of shadow dissipating into shreds of darkness. Beast Boy held her for a moment to make sure she was steady, then looked back at Rune. He nodded, keeping still, wincing occasionally from the pain. Raven looked out at the gems and crushed the first two. She looked around and saw the last in Rune's hands, sparks jumping between the gem and his hand. He nodded at her and she extended a hand, crushing the last and releasing the power the trio had guarded for millennia. The Titans watched as the power receded slowly back from the crushed gems and Slade into the sky like wisps of ghostly steam. She walked over to Rune and he managed to sit up. She looked at him with tired eyes and he nodded, it was over. Raven wrapped her arms around him in a gentle embrace that was careful not to put pressure on any of his injuries, though that looked to be more than half his body. Robin pulled himself up, then did the same to Starfire, returning her embrace as she buried herself in his chest. He looked at Slade, slightly removed, who was still hunched over. _Moves and countermoves_, Slade's words echoed in his head. Robin looked at Slade with contempt, "Checkmate", he whispered. Slade didn't notice as he stayed where he was. With a ginger movement, he reached over and dragged Ravager's mask across the ground to him, lifting it to his face limply in his fingers to see the image he had created. Then, so quietly that if one of Rune's powers hadn't still been active the Titan would have missed it in his embrace with Raven, he cried.


	26. Every Rose has its Thorns

The following days were busy ones for the Titans. They had a destroyed home to repair and refurbish, they had a lot of explaining to do when the likes of the Justice League descended upon them, ready for a battle and instead realising they were late for one. After the longest three days of interrogations from their babysitters, the League left, taking Slade to a prison they promised no one had ever heard of. Robin also had to have quite a lot of discussion with the commissioner of Jump City about the events of that night, trying to disclose only the most crucial of details. There was a citywide manhunt for Plasmus, but it seemed as though he had made quite the disappearance, not even the League could find him when they made an obligatory search in order to ease the concerns of the citizens of Jump City. The people of the coastal city weren't stupid, they knew that something cataclysmic was coming for them that night and the only reason they had survived the night with their liberties, or their lives for that matter, intact was thanks to the Titans and grudgingly accepted the Teen Titans as heroes again with the assurance of the police that the heroes had been framed. Their relationship wouldn't heal instantly Robin reflected, looking out over the harbour to the city, but it would, given time. They all changed after that night, the Titans, some more than others. Robin went through the most visible of them all, he smiled more than ever and more than once had snuck up on Starfire in the kitchen and had wrapped his arms around her, peppering her neck with kisses. They prepared a breakfast for the time one morning and Robin had cracked the most jokes of anyone. He was still serious and treated matters of crime with utmost respect and seriousness but he didn't let it spill over into his personal life anymore, those days were gone. The dark corner inside himself where Slade had always hidden in the crevices of his soul had now been lit up by Starfire's light. Robin had finally defeated his demon. Rune was the subject of the less subtle changes but Raven could see them there nonetheless. He was quieter, the things he had seen had changed him. That night he had gone down himself to collect Rose's body and after cleaning all her wounds, he had dug a grave to lay Rose to rest within. And so, a few days after, the Titans had held a small ceremony for Rose, the grave carefully laid with a bed of gerberas. Raven watched Rune's gaze at the bed of orange daisies at the furtherest removed corner on the island from the tower, he went to a specific florist in Metropolis for the seeds. The headstone was simple rock, the inscription no more embellished _Rose Wilson. Forever lost, never forgotten. _Rune had inscribed it himself with a laser born from his powers. When Raven asked him why he had been so specific about the flowers and everything else, he had just mumbled something "about the past."

Robin had spent a lot of time with each of the team, it was just out of his need to know that they were all right. Sometimes it was the scars that you couldn't see after a battle that were hardest to heal. Beast Boy had confessed to having a nightmare about the moment he watched the blade erupt out of Rune's chest after Rune had pulled him to safety. Raven however, was more of interesting case. She had been sitting with a book in her room when Robin had walked in and sat down beside her. "What you did to Slade, I was worried for second you were going to go that step where none of us have gone."

"So did I" Raven confessed.

"Why did you go that far?" Robin asked, "we had him beaten, there was no need to keep fighting, let alone take it to the brink of killing him."

"I wanted to" Raven said, "or at least my anger did" she quickly added to Robin's reeling expression.

"But you gave into anger?" Robin asked.

Raven nodded. "My powers rely on me restraining my emotion, the more I feel the less in control I am. It's why I meditate, to keep them under control and to sift out what I can't. But I can't sift this out, it's why I couldn't use my powers that night."

"Because you're in love with Rune" Robin said.

Raven nodded and Robin stood. "He's lucky to have you" he said sincerely. "He needs you, now more than ever, if that was believable."

Raven just nodded and Robin squeezed her hand reassuringly before he left. Though Robin had tried his best to shield Rune, there was a growing call amongst the civil forces in Jump City for Rune's arrest, the beating he had given the man had barely scraped by with a few favours owed but to lay waste to the prison and the beatings to the guards were hard to ignore. Robin didn't doubt that he had done wrong but he knew without Rune's actions dipping into shadow, a far worse evil would have been unleashed. It was a debate on a tightrope, too little resistance and Rune would be taken from them, too much and it could incriminate them all, and Robin was determined to realise Starfire's vision of them all becoming undoubted heroes to the city. Robin was standing in the lounge, just looking at the city. The tower was mostly repaired, this room at least betrayed no signs of any conflict. He turned to the sound of footsteps as Starfire's purple boots approached him. He smiled and gave her a small kiss as she joined him in looking out. "The authorities still want to have Rune held accounted for his actions?" She asked.

Robin nodded. "I've been talking to more lawyers than I really care for. They assure me we have a case if it goes that far, but it'll be messy. I'm more hoping for them to drop the charges since public opinion has been swaying for us. The League taking Slade was not what I wanted though, parading him as the criminal he is would have been better for everyone. He's still a secret to them, even now."

"Better to be a captive of the League than to be deceased" Starfire commented quietly.

Robin nodded, "you're still getting over Raven's attack."

Starfire pursed her lips, she did not wish to speak ill of such a close friend. "I confess to being worried by her loss control, she almost tore…"

"She didn't lose control that night" Robin interrupted, "she did exactly what she wanted to."

Starfire's eyes widened. "Are you saying Raven wished to murder Slade? To tear him limb from limb?"

Robin considered his answer. "Not directly, but she reverted to hatred for a reason. Hatred may be a loss of control but it's centred, focussed. When Raven hates someone, all her energy is focussed on destroying that person, there's no room to think about anything else. Love is the opposite, it's not focussed, it's confusing, scrambled, it can make a person sing one minute and cry the next. It's unstoppable when it hits you and you're literally all over the place. Raven reverted to hate because she needed to escape love to focus her power and break through Slade's block. Without Raven calling on her hate, Rune would have died."

Starfire was quiet. "I did not take her emotions into account."

"It's understandable" Robin comforted her, "she scared all of us there."

"So what is next?"

"We rebuild" Robin told her. "Our tower, our relationships, the trust we worked so hard for. We rebuild it all."

"What of the other Titans?" Starfire asked.

Robin's expression wrinkled. "I offered to step down as leader" he told her.

"What?" Starfire exclaimed. "But you can't…"

Robin silenced her with a wave. "There was a vote, the majority was in my favour, though it was decided by one vote."

"Whose?" Raven asked.

"Jinx's" Robin replied, "isn't it funny? We suspected her of returning to her villainous ways under Slade and at the end she was probably the one who stayed truest to being a hero out of all of us."

"I suppose it is" Starfire replied. "We believe in you Robin, we always have and always will."

"I know" Robin replied as Starfire slipped her fingers through his. "But it's past time I earned it." He softly removed his hand from hers. "There's someone else I need to talk to."

Robin walked down to the beach, watching the waves throw themselves down upon the sand. There was the sound like the rumble of thunder as a yellow blur cut across the ocean and stopped before him. "Kid Flash" he said formally.

"So I heard you're staying as our leader" Wally replied.

Robin nodded, feeling awkward and out of words to say. Instead he just sat down on the ground. Wally pulled his mask back, letting his mop of red hair spring free before sitting down beside him. "I guess you voted against me?" Robin asked.

"Actually I voted to keep you on" Wally replied.

"What?" Robin asked, turning to look at him.

"Yeah" Wally said, fixing his old friend with an honest look.

"But after you formed a team to stop us, you fought us, now you're with me?" Robin asked. "Why?"

"I realised I was fighting you for the wrong reasons" Wally told him. "I was fighting you for payback, for Jinx, that wasn't right. You slipped from what we should be as well, but I proved to be no better, and neither did anyone else."

"What about Jinx?" Robin asked.

Wally laughed. "You'd trust her to lead the Titans? I'm dating her and even I wouldn't go anywhere near that far."

Robin chuckled in response, "no, I suppose not."

"To put it simply, you're a shit leader" Wally told him in a joking voice, "but seeing as we don't have anyone better, I guess you'll have to stick around."

Robin laughed at that and punched his friend's shoulder. "You're an ass."

Wally chuckled in reply and the pair sat for a while, watching the sun go down over the ocean. "You actually suck though" Wally added, "what is this, the second time you threatened our existence? That whole Brain/Brotherhood of Evil thing was totally your fault."

"Excuse me?" Robin asked, "I think I haven't done too badly, we beat them remember? And out of the two of us, who is dating a hot alien princess?"

"Jinx is better" Wally instantly replied, "you wouldn't believe me if I told you half the things she could do."

"Did you miss the part where I said 'princess'?" Robin asked again.

The pair laughed again and fell back into silence in the sunlight.

* * *

Cyborg checked the circuitry he had finished rewiring before flicking a switch and the communications room room whirred back into life with a brightening of the lights. "Boo yah" he said quietly to himself, starting all the computers and running diagnostics. He replaced the panel over the circuit board and quickly welded it back into place. Without cleaning off the welding marks or covering the bolt sockets, the entire tower looked like it was either falling apart or holding together through patchwork. It was quite like the team he figured, the state of their home often reflected how they were doing. It was ironic after their abandonment of Jump City had hurt their reputation, so much damage to the tower had been inflicted by the Titans themselves, there had been a lot of broken walls and floors from Silkie's rampage. Cyborg looked over to the computer and organised a call to the Titans East to test that the communications uplink was up and running again, to his standard at least. The communication buzzed twice before a familiar voice came through the speakers and a girl dressed in yellow and black came up on screen. "Hey Sparky, long time no see."

"Hey Bee" Cyborg said, making minute adjustments. "Just running a test call, am I coming through all right over there?"

"I can hear that sweet voice of yours but I've got no face to join with it" Bee told him, leaning into the camera. "Where you at?"

"Just a second" Cyborg said, adjusting the bandwidth on the video feed. "How about now?"

Bee shook her head. "Nope, still nothing."

If Cyborg hadn't spent so much time in the last couple of days repairing the tower, he would've smashed his hands straight through the computer. He restrained himself though, his fists only made noise as they slammed into the counter. "Dammit!" He cursed.

"Whoa whoa whoa there hothead, I was just playing" Bee said soothingly, "I can see you just fine."

"Really?" Cyborg asked, raising his index and middle fingers on his right hand. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

"Um… three?" Bee ventured.

"Not even close" Cyborg told her, lifting off a panel to begin examining the systems again, searching for the the root of the problem. It would almost be easier to tear it all out and start again from scratch.

Bee's shoulders slumped. "Okay, so I'm not getting any pictures of my handsome man in armour, that doesn't mean it's not nice hearing your voice."

"I had voice communication capabilities in minutes" Cyborg said, "only had to install two chips and run some juice through the circuits. I'm looking to reinstall the video conferencing feature and so far I can't even get a video call to one place."

"Sounds like it's taking a toll on you" Bee said, her voice ending with a small note of concern.

"I just don't like it when my things don't work the way I build them to" Cyborg replied, testing the wattage and checking the fuses.

"How are you treating yourself Sugar?" Bee asked.

"My systems are optimal, should be able to work for a few hours straight yet" Cyborg told her.

"There's more to you than just rusty old machine parts" she told him in caring tone.

"Hey" Cyborg said, "there is no part of me that is in any way rusty."

Bee chuckled, "I think your manners could use some oil every now and then. You sound so cute with your pride pricked, you know that?"

"Well that's because you know how to twist me like no one else baby girl" Cyborg told her, reviewing schematics of the computer for anything that wasn't supposed to be there.

"How's the team holding up?" Bee asked.

Cyborg shrugged, "as well as can expected. We're a tough bunch but the challenges of late have made us all used to staying tense. I have a feeling we'll be keeping our guard up a lot longer than we'll need to."

"That's not necessarily a bad trait to have" Bee reminded him.

"Not for heroes" Cyborg agreed. "But we're more than just heroes; we're people, friends."

"And more than friends" Bee said teasingly.

Despite his demeanour, Cyborg smiled. "To a lucky few" he agreed. He replaced the top panel before pulling out a lower one and crawling into the cramped space with a light mounted on his shoulder.

"Maybe you guys need a vacation" Bee suggested.

"I could use a road trip over to you" Cyborg joked, "the change in scenery wouldn't be a bad thing, though I think Robin would say we need to stay in the city to reassure them we're their protectors."

Bee rolled her eyes. "Robin would eat his own shit if he were convinced it was for the best," she snorted, "I don't care if you have to drag that spiky-haired alien-loving control freak workaholic kicking and screaming into that car of yours, you buckle him up and get your cute ass over here."

Cyborg chuckled at the thought of himself forcing Robin into the T-Car, dragging the Boy Wonder by his hair before fastening him into a child's booster seat with double safety straps that he couldn't escape before they left. "I'm actually not too cold to the idea" he replied with a grin, tightening another bolt and gently repairing the insulation around a copper wire that had been frayed. "Though something tells me I might have to knock him out and stow him in the trunk for that to work."

"I won't tell if you don't" Bee teased.

"My Mom always told me to never keep a pretty girl waiting" Cyborg flirted, pulling himself back up. A buzzing sound made him check his attention as the towers systems told him there was rubble obstructing the elevator from rising past the third level. Cyborg groaned.

"More problems?" Bee asked.

"You know it" Cyborg told her, "looks like we'll all be taking the stairs for a while."

"Pity you don't have these" she laughed, lifting herself off the ground as her wings became a blur.

"I wish" Cyborg said, walking away.

"Yo Sparky!" Bee called out from the screen. She gestured to her shoulder. "You got something."

Cyborg looked over and saw some leftover grease from the T-Car he had missed before realising something. "Wait, you saw that?"

"Whatever you did worked" Bee told him with a smile. "My boyfriend's a genius."

Cyborg almost blushed. "I just know my way when poking around the delicate systems."

"I love it when you talk dirty" Bee purred.

Cyborg laughed, "keep it in your pants girl. Wait until we get there."

"Don't leave me hanging" Bee told him, then she softened. "Take care Sparky."

"You too" Cyborg told her.

Bee kissed her fingers, touched them to the camera then ended the call.

Cyborg stepped out of the room and ran a check through the tower's computers. The communications room flashed green, _All Systems Operational._ Cyborg smiled, the Titans were like their tower. Damaged, but being repaired. Hurt, but on the mend. Beaten, but not broken. Cyborg grinned as he left to go deploy one of his new drones down the elevator shaft, they were all going to be fixed, on the surface and below it. He looked around at the patchwork design of the walls and grinned, maybe they could have another of Starfire's 'redecorations' to give it a used look, that had certainly been one way to relish the day. "And the day is good" he murmured to himself, wondering if he could repurpose another of the drones to make him a mile-high sandwich, something to completely rub in the face of a certain green friend of his.

* * *

The wind played at the tips of Beast Boy's hair on the back of his neck as he sat with his legs dangling over the ledge of the tower in the space created by the missing guardrail that had been sliced away. His eyes rolled over the details without particularly noticing them, his mind lost in his thoughts. A seagull cried as it circled the tower, the scavenger looking for something worth its attention but he ignored it. His eyes squinted as the afternoon sun blasted his retinas both from the reflection of a glass skyscraper standing tall across the waves, which were not lacking for sun glares themselves. "You look busy" came a remark from behind him.

Beast Boy turned to see Raven standing behind him.

"I thought it was going to be Cyborg who came up here first" Beast Boy replied, gesturing. Raven walked over and sat with him.

"He's still very set on fixing the tower" Raven replied, "I think it's to hold back the sorrow of losing two good couches in as many years."

Beast Boy chuckled, "yeah, fire and couches never made a good mix."

"Try to keep your fur off the next one" Raven told him, "and maybe I won't have to float as much as I do wherever I go for fear of becoming an enormous hairball."

Beast Boy smiled at her, "it's my way of marking my territory."

"Well I suppose it's just good to have territory again" Raven said, her fingers running along the surface of the metal railing. Beast Boy was quiet, returning his attention to the city.

"Are you okay?" Raven asked. "Since we took down Slade, everyone seems to have become brighter. Everyone except you."

"That was a good night for us" Beast Boy said, "the Titans won. We triumphed over our greatest enemy and saved a hell of a lot of people in the process. We were victorious."

"And yet you lost something that night, didn't you?" Raven said, more a statement than a question.

Beast Boy nodded, pushing his canine tooth into his lip. "My innocence. I can't stop thinking of that night Raven. I see every moment of it every time I close my eyes. Some moments hit me harder than others."

Raven softened, placing a gentle hand on Beast Boy's back as he leaned forward, looking straight down over the edge. "Rune almost dying wasn't your fault."

"I'm not saying that it was" Beast Boy replied.

Raven could sense he was growing agitated. "Then what is it that bothers you so much?"

"It's that that night became too real!" Beast Boy exclaimed. "We're the Teen Titans, not the Justice League, the people we fight are supposed to have loony goals like to change America back into a British colony or uploading themselves into a TV reality, not to kill anyone. Slade was always the darkest force we ever had to fight but he never tried to kill us, more get us out of the way than anything else. Then Slade starts going after these gems and cops are dying left and right, the city is being bombed, people turn on us… I'm not sure if I can match up to face that kind of reality."

"What brought this on?" Raven asked, "the Brotherhood of Evil wasn't too far removed from that sort of intention."

"Rune" Beast Boy replied, "Rune made me see it. When I almost fell off the tower and he pulled me back up, the first…" He struggled with the memory replaying his head. "And almost last thing he said to me was that none of us could die, not yet."

"So?" Raven asked, not seeing the realisations Beast Boy had come to.

"So, that's the kind of team we were" Beast Boy said, "Rune saved my life, pulled me to safety and the first thing he does is crack a joke, regardless of whatever we were fighting. Death was never really ever present in our minds for our missions. Pain? Lots of that. Being beaten unconscious? Sure, on occasion but we always lived with the knowledge that whatever happened, we were waking up the next morning no matter what. Then Rune makes a joke and gets a sword…" He dropped his head as he remembered the pointed steel blade tearing its way out of Rune's chest with an explosion of blood and bone, ripping his heart in half. Raven's hand on Beast Boy's back tightened into a reassuring grip around his shoulder. "The worst part of it though," Beast Boy said, "was the look in his eyes, the absolute fear in his gaze. He was near immortal, he could survive near anything and had never feared dying at someone else's hands. Then it happened and Rune realised everything he had to lose, what we all have to lose."

"He survived" Raven said, trying to comfort him and herself. Beast Boy's words were pushing up memories she didn't want to recall, how Rune's body had simply crumbled like a broken skyscraper falling to pieces.

"But he had never even thought of death in that moment" Beast Boy repeated, "going up this tower to fight Slade, we were going just to stop him, we weren't going to battle him, to fight him, to try and survive, we just acted like we were invincible, because we always have been against the enemies we face. But this is a different breed that's growing, they're desperate and they'll do anything to do what they want. We aren't that kind of team, that's not what we were trained for, save maybe Robin."

"So we should just give up?" Raven asked, "leave the business because it's becoming scary and not fun anymore?"

"No" Beast Boy defended, "but I just don't know how we fit into this growing world anymore."

"It's not just the world that's growing" Raven told him, "we're all changing, always, in our own ways. It's what makes us who we are. They may change to try and stop us, but we learn, and we change to stop them. If you had never changed, could you have led our counterattack on the Brotherhood when they took Robin from us?"

"That's different" Beast Boy argued.

"Bullshit it is" Raven told him. "We're no longer just teens anymore, we're starting to realise the 'Titans' part of our name, and that makes enemies. The longer we do this, the less of a teen we will be and the more of a Titan we will become. Our fight with Slade has changed what it means to be one of us, but that doesn't mean everything is different. We still fight for good, we still fight when it's hopeless and we still never, ever, give up on each other."

"But I didn't give up on anyone" Beast Boy said.

"No" Raven agreed with a smile, "and no one is giving up on you."

Beast Boy looked at her with a small smile before his gaze rolled back to the waves again, the seagull becoming a small white speck as it gave up and retreated back to the mainland. "I've always known what I wanted" he said, steering the conversation in a new direction. "For as long as I can remember it's always been so obvious what the next objective has been. There was helping people, fitting in, finding friends, finding family, and a home. Then there was Terra… and you."

Raven took a small breath in, hoping he wouldn't push at this. "You know what I feel is for Rune" she told him.

He raised a hand, "I do, I do, and I've accepted it but it still leaves a hole in me. I don't know what I want anymore, what's next, anything. That reminder about how death can always be so close, waiting for us at anytime. Waiting isn't enough, I need to do more living before I'm ready to leave, but I don't know where to start."

"That's the good thing about life" Raven said, wrapping an arm around his shoulder. "Just when you can't find the next part of life you're looking for and it all threatens to stop, that missing piece? It finds you."

"How did you get so wise?" Beast Boy asked her.

"I read" Raven told him with a chuckle on her lips, "you should try it sometime."

"I know how to read!" Beast Boy cried out defensively.

Raven smirked, "I'll believe that when you start reading the newspaper to read and not as dirt box filler."

Beast Boy was forced to concede a smile at Raven's jibe. "I do it to annoy Robin" he excused. He stood up and Raven joined him, wrapping the guard rail in black energy and bending it to once again blockade the spot where they were just sitting. Beast Boy leant against it for a test. His eyes spotted the lonely spot of colour generated by the gerberas and sighed. "How's Rune doing?"

"He's holding up" Raven said, "though he hasn't even mentioned her to me since that night, or how it happened."

"It's odd" Beast Boy said, his eyes still on Rose's burial site. "When Rune first came to us as moody old Darkside with his story of not having a home, running away whenever he hurt someone or destroyed something when a new power set off, it reminded me of Terra. I used to think Rune was like her."

Raven asked, "I used to as well, though now to me Rune is just Rune. Rose though, she reminds me of Terra."

"How so?" Beast Boy asked.

"Rose was moved after a tragic incident, she gave her allegiance to Slade who forced her to fight against the person she loved. She fought but there was always that last small spark of her old self that was strong enough to make herself unable to kill him, no matter how hard she wanted to. And in the end, she gave everything."

"Yeah, but Terra helped us defeat Slade" Beast Boy said.

Raven didn't react. "Rose's mask stopped Slade instantly. I don't think she and Terra are as different as they initially appear."

"Then Rune is lucky he has you" Beast Boy. "Terra left a hole I'm still not sure how to fill completely just yet. If Rose was anything like that to Rune, he has to be hurting."

"He mourns for her" Raven said, "but it will not hold him back. While she was alive, Rose was like a parachute on Rune's back, holding him from being able to move forward. That parachute is gone now, but he still needs to catch his breath before he can finally run."

"How far will he go?" Beast Boy asked.

"That," Raven said, turning away, "all depends on what we're looking for."

"Raven" Beast Boy called.

The empath turned to look at her friend.

"I am afraid of dying, when that day comes" he told her, "but the one thing I will never be afraid of, and can't be, is living."

Raven considered his words, how she had so often held back from the feelings Rune had inspired and had made flare within her. Was it possible she had been afraid to live? It was much more than possible, she realised, but she knew it was a fear he had helped her overcome, all she had needed was time. "I'd call that almost wise of you" she said to Beast Boy, who looked far too happy with himself. "Come talk to me when you're reading something at a level higher than Bambi" she told him before leaving, she had some living to do.

* * *

Rune was silent as he tightened the last strap on his pack and zipped it shut. "Going somewhere?" A voice from his door asked.

Rune turned to see Raven standing in his door. Her short blue boots exposed more of her long lithe legs that seemed to go on forever. She watched as his eyes traced her figure before he stepped away from his room which was oddly clean. "Raven" he murmured and she stepped forward into his grasp. She felt his arms slip around her and hold her tight as she cradled her head into his collarbone before looking up and sharing a soft kiss with him. Rune savoured the taste of her lips as they touched his, he wished they would never leave. She eventually stepped back and observed his room. The bed was made, a stack of towels sitting on the corner, the draws were empty.

"You're leaving" she realised.

Rune didn't try to deny it.

"Why?" She asked in a small voice, feeling betrayed.

"For as long as I've had these runes, I've been running" he told her. "I've never helped anyone with them, made life better. Everything I've ever done has been trying to minimise the damage I cause and fix the mistakes I've made. The Titans are a different breed of hero. They stand ready for trouble, to guard and protect the people of Jump City, Earth and even beyond." He looked away. "That's not me. It's been an honour to be with you guys, to be part of a family but simply stopping the mistakes I've made doesn't atone for them. I need to help people, try and make things better instead of trying to keep them from falling."

"We defend good" Raven said, "but you need to find and root out the darkness." It hurt to hear him say this but it hurt even worse to understand it.

Rune nodded sombrely. "I need to make this world brighter after the darkness I helped usher in, directly or otherwise."

"Would you come ho… here?" Raven asked, she bit back from using that word.

"I will come home" Rune promised, not shying away from it. "But not before I've done what I'm setting out to do."

Raven practically threw herself at Rune as she wrapped him in a hug, clamping her arms around him as hard as she physically could. She scrunched her eyes shut as her hot tears leaked out from between her eyelids. Rune held her as tight as he dared to, his hands made fists scrunching up her cloak. They kissed again, sharing a look. Rune's eyes felt tired as every fibre of him told him to stay but he knew there was so much he had to accomplish first, he had been debating it internally for days. He would return eventually but he had to leave before he could settle. Resisting the urge to fall backwards onto the bed with her, he kissed the top of her head and she slowly let him go. He shouldered his pack and slipping his hand into Raven's they left.

_I'm going to miss this _Rune reflected as they passed the various rooms, the lounge, the dojo, the garage. "Wait" he told Raven, opening the door and walking outside. He walked down the path to where Rose's grave lay and pulled out a flower for the girl. Rune gave the girl's namesake in his hand a small squeeze before he rested the rose down on top of the stone bearing her name and left. A drop of blood fell from the thumb it had pricked, Rune deciding against sealing it up. The pair crossed back into the mainland and weren't oblivious to the looks they were getting. "You're a hero again" Rune remarked.

Raven squeezed his hand, her fingers interlaced with his. "We're all heroes" she told him.

They continued to walk until they reached a more industrial district. "This is where I get off" Rune told her.

Raven nodded, as much as she didn't want to admit it. "Stay in touch" she told him.

"I left my communicator back home" Rune told her.

Raven nodded and they embraced in another hug, Raven quietly withholding the fact that she had already slipped her own communicator into his pack before they had even left the tower. "Go," she told him, she heard the blast of a horn and realised why he had chosen to come this way. "Chase that horizon."

Rune smiled and she pulled him into one last desperate kiss, pushing every shred of love and longing she had for him through it, she hoped he would always remember her, because she knew she wouldn't forget him. The horn blasted again and Rune broke the kiss to look around. A nod from Raven was the last thing they shared before he turned and ran for the fence, scaling up three quarters from the bound before flipping over and disappearing over the fence. Raven nodded and turned away, there was another place she wanted to go before home beckoned. After another fifteen minutes of walking with only her shadow for company, she entered her tea shop, more than a little nervous given the last time she had come here. The old woman instantly recognised her with a smile however and she was greeted and ushered through to the poetry stage without hesitation. She laid down a note on the counter and asked for one cup as she looked towards the stage, wondering what dark poetic gems would possibly be uncovered today, talent had an unusual way of cropping up when it was least expected. The steaming cup was laid in front of her, her note tucked underneath it. She looked up at the woman who smiled. "Heroes are welcome in my home anytime" she said.

Raven smiled and raised her cup in thanks before taking a long sip, feeling the flavour and warmth spread through her body, although there was one spot inside her that colder than it should have felt. Raven didn't worry though, she knew exactly why it had gone a little bit colder, and why it would not feel the warmth she craved for a while to come. She looked at the stage which was now empty and feeling a rare surge of boldness within her, put her cup down and stood up. All eyes were on her as she walked to the front and sat on the stool in front of the microphone. She squinted and shielded her eyes from the lights shining on her, lowering it as the lights were dimmed. "Thanks" she said awkwardly, she had seen this done a thousand times before but it felt so odd, different of her. "I've never actually been up here before so forgive me if I kind of suck at this." She took a deep breath and thought of the source of warmth in her that had become colder. She remembered that warmth, their embrace in the rain, when she had held him him the shower, the memories that followed afterwards.

Across the city, Rune sprinted to catch a train that had just begun its journey. He reached out, his hand inches from the steel bar that formed the back rail.

"The night falls, as if slain by the sun," Raven started, remembering everything from that night. "Entwined are we."

Rune gritted his teeth as the train began to pull away but one last surge of strength made him throw himself out and his arm wrapped around the rail, anchoring him for the next bend of his journey.

"The emotion for which you pine flares once," Raven spoke softly, her entire identity in the moment based on her feelings for Rune, his past, everything that made him who he was. "Then dies, swallowed by guilt."

Rune grunted as he pulled himself forward and swung his legs over. He climbed to the top of the train and began to walk forward carefully, looking for an open space to rest in. He looked over the side and spying what he was looking for, swung over and landed inside a car with a few spaces where he could bargain for a few hours' uncomfortable rest. He remembered how afraid he had been for so long of sleep, the nightmares he knew were waiting for him had now all been put to rest.

"Your passion throbbed no more, your hope; long perished, how could you fail to believe?"

Rune laid his head back and had almost closed his eyes when he heard a noise. Looking outside, he saw a youth of a similar age to himself running for the train. The cars had picked up speed and he was beginning to lag behind, Rune could see the hope failing in his eyes and the speed dying in his legs.

"You surrounded yourself in the darkness, forgotten by all, even yourself."

Rune swung out and reached, grabbing the youth by his wrist and pulled, swinging him into the car. The two sat on the cold metal floor, catching their breath before they would exchange names and other such pleasantries.

"But even in the darkness, your shadow will never leave."

Rune gave a nod to the guy who looked him up and down. "Nice ink" he remarked.

Rune looked at the paintings that obscured the carvings on his arms and then up to his new friend, allowing the cracks of a grin to shine through. "I'm Rune" he said, offering a hand.

The dark haired youth looked at it before accepting the hand. "Jason," he replied, shaking it, "Jason Todd."

Rune looked at Jason and wondered what was in the pack he was holding onto so tightly before brushing the thoughts aside, everyone had their secrets. Jason looked down at his pack and tucked in a loose end of sleek black fabric. Rune looked back outside the door, to the setting sun. It was the end of a day, but that only meant one thing. The next day was coming.

"And I will be that unseen shadow, your eternal companion in the darkness. For no matter how dark the night that slays the sun, I will not leave. I will endure. I will never forget."

~_Fin~_

~THANKS FOR READING!~

~Small Mistake


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